Landschap met hoge bomen en een vijver c. 1850

Henri-Joseph Harpignies made this landscape with tall trees and a pond using etching, a printmaking technique, in the 19th century. Harpignies belonged to the Barbizon School, a group of French landscape painters who rejected the grand historical and mythological scenes favored by the Academy. They chose instead to paint directly from nature, celebrating the French countryside. They turned away from the institution. This etching captures a quiet, unassuming scene. There are no signs of human presence, only trees and a still pond. The Barbizon painters saw in nature a purity and simplicity that was absent from modern urban life, a concept that challenged the industrial revolution. The Rijksmuseum holds a collection of Harpignies' graphic work and is worth a visit. Looking at landscape art through the lens of social history helps us understand the values and beliefs of the people who created and consumed it, revealing their relationship to nature.