Koe wordt gemolken in een landschap 1809 - 1859

This landscape showing a cow being milked was created by Pieter de Goeje, who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It’s rendered in ink on paper, using an engraving technique. Look closely, and you’ll notice the incredible detail, achieved through a network of fine lines. Engraving is an intaglio process – meaning that the image is incised into a metal plate, and then ink is applied, and finally the surface is wiped clean, leaving ink only in the recesses. The printmaker needs skill and control to achieve a range of tonal effects. In this case, the subject matter and the making process have a subtle connection. Both relate to labor. The printmaker’s patient labor mirrors the labor of the milkmaid. In both cases, we see a human being carefully extracting value from a raw material. This artwork reminds us to see the work involved in producing commodities we often take for granted.