Young Bull 1870 - 1892

Johannes Hubertus Leonardus de Haas painted this "Young Bull" with oil on panel, though the specific date is unknown. De Haas was Dutch, painting during a time of increasing industrialization. We might consider how the rise of modern technology influenced artists such as De Haas, who dedicated himself to a kind of rural realism. There is a feeling for the actual substance of grass, hide, and wood. It’s as though he is directing our attention to things that might otherwise be overlooked. Does this painting make a comment on the social structure of its time? Perhaps by portraying the beauty of something not artificial, not industrialized. To understand paintings like this, we can use the methods of social history. We might research the institutions of art in the Netherlands. What kind of art was considered important and why? We can begin to understand the artist, the artwork and its cultural context.