A single grainstack dominates the right side of the scene, its conical form rising steeply against a glowing sky. The stack’s surface is built from thick, swirling strokes of paint, with deep purples and reds layered over ochre and brown, suggesting the rough texture of straw catching the last light of day. Sunset colors flood the background, where a band of pale yellow and pink stretches across the horizon, fading into a soft blue at the top of the canvas.

Low, indistinct rooftops and trees appear in the middle distance, rendered in dabs of blue, green, and orange, their forms softened by the haze of evening. The field in the foreground is a mosaic of short, broken brushstrokes in green, violet, and gold, echoing the colors of the sky and stack. Light falls from the left, catching the upper edge of the grainstack and bathing the landscape in a warm, diffuse glow.

No figures are present, and the landscape feels still, with the grainstack casting a gentle shadow over the ground. The composition is carefully balanced, with the massive form of the stack offset by the broad sweep of sky and the horizontal line of distant buildings. Every surface is animated by visible brushwork, from the stippled sky to the layered colors of the earth.

At the lower left, the artist’s signature and the date 91 appear in red, anchoring the painting in time. Claude Monet painted Grainstack (Sunset) in 1891. The work’s title identifies the main subject and the time of day, focusing attention on the effects of sunset light on a rural scene.