Herder en herderin met vee 1653

Adriaen van de Velde created this etching of a herder and herderin with cattle in the Netherlands sometime in the mid-17th century. It is an idyllic scene, suggesting a peacefulness of country life. But it’s important to remember that the image of rural life as simple and untroubled was a trope with a long history in European art. We have to ask ourselves what purposes such an image served at that time. The Dutch Golden Age was a period of rapid economic growth and urban expansion. Such images may have served as a comforting reminder of a traditional way of life that was fast disappearing, even as they obscured the realities of rural poverty and labor. To understand it better, one could look into the economic conditions of the time, popular literature, and other images of rural life. Doing so allows us to understand the role of art in shaping perceptions and preserving particular cultural values. The meaning of this etching is thus contingent on its social and institutional context.