Kudde runderen 1879

Curator: Ah, this print—Eugene Burnand’s “Kudde runderen,” made in 1879. It’s an etching. Editor: My goodness, that sky looks troubled! Almost apocalyptic, pressing down on that herd. I get a real sense of foreboding here, which is intriguing for what's essentially a landscape scene. Curator: Foreboding, yes, but it's also a very grounded piece, wouldn’t you say? The Realist movement was all about portraying everyday life as it was lived. Here we see cattle herded by a rider across what appears to be a coastal flatland. The etching medium itself adds to that earthiness with its finely scratched details. Editor: Realism often does, but I keep coming back to the sky. Look how it dominates the composition, dwarfing everything below. It feels more like a dramatic Romantic painting masquerading as Realism! Curator: It's true that Burnand captures a particular mood. It certainly adds to the power of this piece. There's this sense of something greater at work than just animal husbandry. Editor: The animals themselves feel burdened, those horns… Like they’re weighed down not just by the weather but something heavier. The whole scene seems ripe for symbolic interpretation, even if unintended. I wonder, who did Burnand imagine as the audience for such a piece? Curator: Printmaking at this time often had a very public role. Reproductions allowed for art to be widely distributed and seen by a public interested in representations of everyday life. Burnand was clearly participating in a larger tradition that saw rural labor as worthy of artistic representation. It highlights an almost photographic snapshot aesthetic, emphasizing ordinary and working class subjects. Editor: And yet it elevates it, makes us contemplate it. Curator: Exactly. Even if it’s just a simple herd of cows. Editor: I can see the value of finding unexpected weight and gravity in the details of daily life. Thank you, I feel that I may be ready to face what the day brings now!