Five cows at a river c. 18th century

Editor: So this is Samuel Howitt's "Five cows at a river". I'm struck by how calm it feels, almost like a staged pastoral scene. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It does have that carefully constructed feel, doesn't it? What I find interesting is how Howitt balances the idealized landscape with a sense of earthy reality. Look at the intricate detail in the foliage, contrasted with the almost caricatured cows. What do you make of that contrast? Editor: I guess it makes it feel both real and a bit... artificial, at the same time? Like a play. Curator: Exactly! It's like Howitt's inviting us to consider our own relationship with nature, are we looking at reality, or our constructed vision of it? Food for thought, right? Editor: Definitely! I never thought of it that way before.