Why Did Pope Leo XIV Invoke Van Gogh in His First Address?

Image: Vincent van Gogh, “Sower at Sunset” (1888). Image source: Google Arts & Culture via Wikimedia. Public Domain. Article by Rhea Nayyar. Hyperallergic – May 25, 2025.

Pope Leo XIV invoked Vincent van Gogh’s “Sower at Sunset” (1888) in his first general audience on Wednesday, May 21, using the painting to illustrate his reflections on the biblical Parable of the Sower. The Pope ruminated on the Dutch Post-Impressionist painter’s work while speaking to a crowd of some 40,000 people at Saint Peter’s Square at the Vatican, where he also called for an end to […]

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