Man met pijp kijkt toe hoe een akker geploegd wordt met een ploeg getrokken door twee paarden 1830 - 1910

Lambert Jacquelart made this print of a man with a pipe watching a field being ploughed by horses sometime in the 19th century. Here we have an image of rural labour mediated through the detached gaze of the leisured classes. The very act of observing agricultural workers goes hand-in-hand with the power dynamics of class. Made in Europe, at a time when rapid industrialization was creating new social divisions, this image reflects anxieties about traditional ways of life. Notice how the artist's use of light and shadow emphasizes the contrast between the idleness of the figure in the foreground and the labour happening in the background. The man's pipe and relaxed pose suggest a distance from the realities of rural life, while the ploughed field symbolizes the hard work that sustains society. By exploring these social and cultural contexts, we can gain a deeper appreciation of the complex meanings embedded within seemingly simple images. Resources in social and institutional history, such as census records, newspapers, and institutional archives, can help to reveal the social conditions that shaped artistic production.