Le Labourage 1844

"Le Labourage" (1844) by Rosa Bonheur depicts a scene of rural labor. The painting features two horses pulling a plow across a field, with a man guiding the plow and a boy riding on one of the horses. The scene is depicted with meticulous detail, with the horses' muscles and the texture of the field rendered realistically. Bonheur is renowned for her depictions of animals and her interest in depicting the lives of working people, "Le Labourage" exemplifies this. This painting is an example of Realism, a genre that aimed to depict everyday life with accuracy and objectivity.