Liggende koe, naar rechts 1780 - 1851

This print of a reclining cow, facing right, was made by Pieter Janson sometime before 1851. It's an etching, a printmaking process where lines are incised into a metal plate with acid, which then hold ink and transfer the image to paper. The magic of etching lies in the artist's control of the line. Janson uses hatching to describe the animal’s bulk and the texture of its hide. The cow seems to sink into the ground, a weighty presence on the page. In the 18th and 19th centuries, agricultural scenes were increasingly popular. As the industrial revolution transformed society, images like this one offered a romanticized view of rural life. Yet, it’s important to remember that the profitability of agriculture relied on the labor of both humans and animals. This print encapsulates a whole history of food production and social relations, distilled in a single image of an animal at rest.