De wisseling der jaargetijden, Doet ieder jeugdig hart verblijden 1832 - 1850

This is a print titled ‘The Changing Seasons Gladdens Every Youthful Heart’, made by T.J. Wijnhoven Hendriksen in Rotterdam. Hendriksen's piece presents four scenes, each representing a season, reflecting the cyclical nature of life and work in the Dutch countryside. There are no wealthy landowners here, only idealized rural labor. Notice that the landscape and the activities within them are neatly framed in a four-part grid. The print flattens the lived experience of country life. It romanticizes work, and simplifies the relationship between people and the land, airbrushing out the politics of ownership or the risks of harvest. The figures seem frozen in time, their actions symbolic rather than deeply felt. Through its idealized scenes and symmetrical organization, the print seems to suggest stability and harmony but the reality of the seasonal laborers was undoubtedly harsher. We’re left to consider the difference between these romanticized images and lived reality.