Ruit met koeien en schapen in een landschap c. 1834

Andries Melort created this image of cows and sheep in a landscape using etching; we're not sure exactly when, but probably in the first half of the 1800s. Melort lived through a period of massive social and economic upheaval. As the industrial revolution gathered steam, rural populations were increasingly marginalized. His pastoral scenes celebrated a vision of country life that was already fading. But who was this rural idyll really for? Consider the role of animals in a pre-industrial economy – these are not pets, but property. This image prompts us to consider how class and labor shape our relationship with the natural world. It invites us to reflect on whose interests are being served by this picturesque scene, and at whose expense.