De molenaar, zijn zoon en de ezel 1894 - 1959

This is a narrative print by Lamouche, showing a series of events in the story of the miller, his son, and the donkey. Imagine the artist composing this piece, working out the layout with figures, animals and landscapes all squeezed together, telling a tale in pictures. I’m interested in the way sequential images create meaning, how each part of the story unfolds in relation to the others. What was Lamouche thinking when he made this? Maybe he was thinking about the difficulties of pleasing everyone, or maybe just trying to create something fun, or a commentary on something. You can see these characters, and the donkey, have a difficult time of it! It’s a funny image, and it reminds me of other narrative paintings where artists are trying to capture a story in one frame, like in a comic strip. It shows how artists are always experimenting with form, always looking for new ways to tell a story. And how ideas are constantly recycled.