Herder met een hond en kudde schapen bij een boom c. 1876 - 1888

Curator: This is a drawing by Anton Mauve titled "Herder met een hond en kudde schapen bij een boom," or "Shepherd with a Dog and Flock of Sheep by a Tree." It was created around 1876 to 1888. Editor: It feels almost like a ghost of a memory, a half-formed idea. A whisper of rural life. I find it incredibly evocative in its simplicity. Curator: It's a pencil drawing, and you see Mauve's hand so clearly in the rapid, almost frenetic lines. We sense the Impressionistic drive here, trying to capture fleeting moments, the atmosphere of a scene. Editor: Exactly! Those sheep are just hinted at, an impression, right? Yet, you still get the whole idea, the vastness of a herd moving through the fields, a protective canine nearby, an almost allegorical lone tree as a backdrop. What might a symbol expert say of the symbolism? Curator: Well, the shepherd archetype is ancient, carrying so much religious and literary weight. It embodies care, guidance, and even sacrifice. The tree might echo those protective and grounding concepts, a familiar icon. Mauve likely was less conscious of the symbolism, more focused on realistically capturing life as he saw it. He definitely participated in The Hague School art movement that captured rustic, pastoral scenes. Editor: Ah, yes, you know how I dislike a symbol where there isn't an attempt at gritty real life informing it! Knowing this, though, makes the simplicity even more fascinating. Was he drafting something larger? Or do you think he stopped here on purpose? It has a wonderfully unfinished feel about it. Like a sketch in a naturalist's journal... Curator: Given the time, this could very well have been a study, a preliminary sketch for a more finished painting or watercolor. The Rijksmuseum is lucky to have such an evocative snapshot of the artist's process. But even on its own, it feels complete, doesn’t it? A window into another time and place, another way of life. Editor: Agreed. I see that shepherd silhouetted in the early evening or a cold sunrise; such a lonely, rugged existence comes to mind. Curator: It also helps us appreciate how much artists like Mauve contributed to the broader artistic conversation, connecting realism to more modern approaches in landscape painting. Editor: Absolutely, those pencil strokes tell a full story even if he himself perhaps didn’t quite finish telling it himself.