Twee herders en hun kudde op een heuvel Possibly 1655

Harmen ter Borch made this drawing of two shepherds and their flock on a hill in 1655. It's rendered in pen and brown ink, with a subtle grey wash on paper. In ter Borch’s time, drawing was an essential skill, used for everything from preparatory sketches to finished presentation pieces. The pen and ink medium lends itself to clarity and precision, a perfect combination for the naturalistic scene depicted here. But the addition of the grey wash softens the image, creating a sense of atmosphere that elevates the drawing beyond mere documentation. Ter Borch was from a family of artists, and he spent his career travelling between the Dutch Republic, England, France, and Italy. He depicted the world around him, but did so through the lens of his sophisticated artistic training. The simplicity of this rural scene belies the skill involved in its execution. By carefully observing the relationships between form and tone, we appreciate the ways in which the most modest of materials can be transformed into a work of art.