South African Landscape with Springboks 

Richard Friese painted this view of "South African Landscape with Springboks" sometime around the turn of the century, likely on canvas with oil paints. European artists in the 19th century often depicted the landscapes of colonized lands, offering viewers back home a taste of the exotic. This painting presents a vision of South Africa as a vast, empty space populated only by wildlife. The springboks, native to the area, are shown at ease in their natural habitat. What is absent here is any indication of the human presence. The lack of indigenous inhabitants implicitly reinforces the colonial narrative of an empty land awaiting European settlement. To understand the painting fully, we need to research the history of colonialism in South Africa. We should be aware of how the representation of landscape could promote a particular political agenda.