Country Road with Horse and Cart

Country Road with Horse and Cart – The landscape he saw disappearing

Discover 'Landkar op weg', the emptiest and most expansive design from our collaboration with the Emile Van Dorenmuseum in Genk. A wide, panoramic canvas: a sandy road running across open heath, a horse and cart with two figures in the distance, and a single dark pine. Beyond that, only sky.

In August 1901, coal was discovered beneath Belgian Limburg. The quiet farming village Van Doren had moved to would grow within a few decades into what the museum calls 'the third industrial hub of Flanders'. He watched it happen – and he did more than keep painting. He took a seat on the Royal Commission for Monuments and Landscapes and became an active advocate for the landscape he painted.

That story doesn't end with 'and then it was gone'. A good part of that heath is protected today as Hoge Kempen National Park, and the museum credits that protection in part to painters like Van Doren, who were the first to show what it was worth. He painted it because he saw it disappearing – and that painting is part of the reason a piece of it is still there.

On the sock, the canvas became an ochre-yellow foot for the sand and dry heath, a light blue cuff for the sky, and in between the sandy road with the cart and the pine. Knitted in, not printed – the colours are part of the sock itself, so they don't fade.

'Landkar op weg' · oil on canvas, 76.5 × 38 cm · collection Emile Van Dorenmuseum, Genk.

A one-time run of 700 pairs. When they're gone, they're gone.

• 80% organic cotton
• 15% polyamide
• 5% elastane

• Free UK delivery on orders over £39
• UK delivery time: 2-3 working days
• Delivery time to Germany, Netherlands & Belgium: 1-2 working days
• Delivery time to rest of Europe: 2-4 working days

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Organic cotton is grown without harmful chemicals such as synthetic pesticides and fertilisers. Instead, natural methods are used to maintain soil health and manage pests. This process helps protect the environment and creates safer working conditions during harvest.

For our socks, this means you can enjoy soft, comfortable socks that are kind to the planet while being durable and sustainable. By choosing organic cotton, you help reduce chemical pollution and support ethical farming practices. It's a small choice that benefits both you and the environment!