Kippen bij een kar voor een schutting c. 1779 - 1845

Jacques Marchand created this print, "Chickens by a Cart in Front of a Fence," sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century, now at the Rijksmuseum. The composition is immediately striking for its use of line and texture, creating a seemingly simple rural scene. Marchand’s print captures a moment of stillness. A cart sits idle, its wheel a perfect circle bisected by strong, straight lines that lead the eye across the image. Behind it, a rough fence and overgrown grasses create a backdrop that is both chaotic and contained. Two chickens are rendered with delicate strokes, seemingly pecking at the ground, oblivious to the larger structure around them. The print utilizes a semiotic system of signs. The cart and fence symbolize human order, yet the encroaching nature suggests the temporary nature of this control. The chickens, free to roam, embody a kind of natural anarchy. Marchand seems to question fixed meanings by showing nature reclaiming spaces made by man. The aesthetic choices in the artwork encourage us to reflect on the tension between order and chaos, structure and fluidity, inviting us to contemplate the ever-changing relationship between humanity and the natural world.