Setting Sun is not only a radiant ball of energy set upon an alluringly bright Aureolin yellow ground, but a preternatural presence above a conflation of simplified forms handled with an exuberant application of impasto infused with the sheer brilliance of vibrant color that is characteristic of Hans Hofmann’s best work. Clearly inspired by nature, it is an affirmation of his commitment to never imitate nature, but rather utilize elements of it to initiate the integrity of pictorial space. Setting Sun was painted in 1957 when Hofmann was 77 years of age. He must have painted it in eager anticipation of his retirement from a career of teaching the likes of Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Helen Frankenthaler, and Larry Rivers. Extracting inspiration from the vivaciously hued landscapes of Henri Matisse and abstracted figurations of Robert Delaunay, Hofmann created a captivating work that endlessly engages the viewer. Rife with color and shapes, its energetic swashes of impasto trace a surface populated with those colorful rectangular ‘slabs’ that break up the plane of the canvas. Between the swaths of color and slabs of geometric rectangularity, beneath the sun are bountiful examples of Hofmann’s prime teaching: the concept of push-pull, a way of creating space without impinging upon the flatness of the canvas’ surface and which evokes the luminosity and intensity of its namesake and delivers the cohesive power of Hofmann’s best work.