A String of Horses Outside an Inn 1878

Otto Bache painted this large canvas of horses outside an inn sometime in the late nineteenth century. It offers a glimpse into the cultural life of rural Denmark. Horses were central to nineteenth-century Danish agriculture and transportation, but here Bache seems less interested in their practical uses than in their symbolic potential. Notice how the horses dominate the scene; they are rendered in great detail. This implies the importance of animal husbandry to the Danish economy and national identity. The gathering of people outside the inn, combined with the celebratory fanfare of the trumpet, creates a sense of community. In painting this scene, Bache aimed to capture a specific vision of Danishness. The artwork is currently housed in the SMK - Statens Museum for Kunst. Art historians can study archival material from institutions like the SMK to better understand how paintings like this one were received in their own time. Art's meaning is never fixed; it changes with its social and institutional context.