Herder met zijn kudde aan zee 1747 - 1847

Editor: This is "Herder met zijn kudde aan zee," or "Shepherd with his flock at sea," a drawing and print, an engraving actually, made sometime between 1747 and 1847 by Pierre Savart. It strikes me as a scene full of contrasts: the shepherd in the foreground seems to be yelling towards rough seas, almost battling the chaos of the water with his posture, while his sheep seem unconcerned and almost carelessly strewn around. What do you make of this scene? Curator: Oh, this little drama! It whispers to me of anxieties, those ever-churning worries we all carry, doesn’t it? The Baroque flair definitely amps up the melodrama of it all, but think about it. The Shepherd is gesticulating towards a future that is surely fraught with peril, that stormy sea a big question mark for the shepherd, and for us perhaps. Do you think he is perhaps more concerned with the “what if” instead of focusing on his present reality? Editor: I think so. What’s fascinating is how Savart portrays this shepherd in contrast with his nonchalant sheep who are present and content! That Baroque flair makes the Shepherd seem almost comical, flailing about! It kind of makes me question where I'm directing my energy, too! Curator: Precisely! Isn’t that the beauty of art, holding up a mirror and whispering, "Recognize yourself?" Look at the lines in the waves crashing, each so delicately etched... Then those sheep, scattered like thoughts we can’t quite wrangle, bleating perhaps about nothing in particular, only about feeling safe now in numbers with each other and grass to nibble at. Does the Shepherd wish that he could quiet the chatter in his head, even momentarily, like the sheep have? Editor: It really is all in the details! Thinking about that contrast you mentioned between the shepherd's anxiety and the sheep's serenity made the artwork incredibly more impactful! I'll try to remember to look closely next time! Curator: Wonderful. Maybe all that we can ever hope for is the present contentment of sheep now and again. Don't you agree?