A rare example of Oskar Kallis’s work. The artist, who died young, was full of creative energy; his notebooks and sketchbooks are filled with drawings inspired either by real life or by mythological and fantastical scenes. Sunset lies somewhere between these two realms. It is possible that Kallis quickly captured something he saw using pastels. At the same time, he imbued such emotional natural moments with symbolic meaning. Many of Kallis’s works are rooted in existential concerns and reflect on life and death. For Kallis, the setting sun likely symbolized, among other things, rebirth and the power of nature.

The work is executed in pastels—a technique Kallis adopted largely following the example of his teacher, Ants Laikmaa. Pastels allow for rapid response to fleeting moments. The dimensions of the piece also suggest that it was not a carefully planned painting; rather, Kallis, experiencing the sunset, trusted his first impulse, quickly grabbed paper and pastels, and translated the experience directly onto the work.