Paarden in de wei 1856 - 1882

Jules baron Finot captured "Horses in the Meadow" with watercolor on paper. The painting contains a horse lifting its front leg, a seemingly simple scene of rural life, yet it echoes an ancient motif: the rearing horse. This pose, reminiscent of classical equestrian statues, symbolizes power, nobility, and control, dating back to antiquity where it adorned monuments of emperors and gods. Think of the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius in Rome, a symbol of imperial might. Here, the context shifts. The horse is not a symbol of power, but of vitality, a life force. The rearing horse transcends its martial connotations. This vitality is also a nod to the cycle of life, death, and rebirth, echoing through time, reappearing on battlefields and meadows. The horse’s gesture engages us on a subconscious level. This motif has been passed down through history, continually transformed by the collective memory and the passage of time, a testament to its enduring symbolic power.