Herdswoman Familiarity: Timelessness in Art.
Amidst the many art styles in Western history, the rococo style stands out as one of the most defining styles. As an evolution from the baroque period, rococo paintings have cemented themselves with asymmetry and pastel colors, evoking playful themes as opposed to political themes of the past. Upon visiting the Dallas Museum of Art, I encountered the rococo painting, Landscape with Distant Buildings and a Herdswoman, while perusing the museum’s various collections. This painting, concocted in 1731 by François Boucher, presents a pastoral lifestyle that can be equated with modern-day working life. With its use of unidentifiable structures and depiction of a working woman, the average person can connect this art piece with their own professional life.
Landscape with Distant Buildings and a Herdswoman is a fairly straightforward painting. A peasant woman sits upon a horse, holding a basket as she …show more content…
In the early days of human existence, herders were some of the nomadic peoples that came about amidst hunters and gatherers. While herding is not often spoken about when people think about the initial plights of human history, it was definitely an important option for pre-Agricultural Revolution peoples. It is not insignificant, either, that herding has persisted as an occupation throughout 2017. This brings to mind the idea that the people of the 17th century were not so different from today’s people, especially when it comes to their everyday lives. They worked, as we all do, amidst their own countries; the ambiguity of the whole painting’s location and landscape aids that narrative, as does the idea that the woman’s occupation is timeless. Boucher seems to suggest that humankind all exists on one plane, where each life is lived in the footsteps of the shadows before
Amidst the many art styles in Western history, the rococo style stands out as one of the most defining styles. As an evolution from the baroque period, rococo paintings have cemented themselves with asymmetry and pastel colors, evoking playful themes as opposed to political themes of the past. Upon visiting the Dallas Museum of Art, I encountered the rococo painting, Landscape with Distant Buildings and a Herdswoman, while perusing the museum’s various collections. This painting, concocted in 1731 by François Boucher, presents a pastoral lifestyle that can be equated with modern-day working life. With its use of unidentifiable structures and depiction of a working woman, the average person can connect this art piece with their own professional life.
Landscape with Distant Buildings and a Herdswoman is a fairly straightforward painting. A peasant woman sits upon a horse, holding a basket as she …show more content…
In the early days of human existence, herders were some of the nomadic peoples that came about amidst hunters and gatherers. While herding is not often spoken about when people think about the initial plights of human history, it was definitely an important option for pre-Agricultural Revolution peoples. It is not insignificant, either, that herding has persisted as an occupation throughout 2017. This brings to mind the idea that the people of the 17th century were not so different from today’s people, especially when it comes to their everyday lives. They worked, as we all do, amidst their own countries; the ambiguity of the whole painting’s location and landscape aids that narrative, as does the idea that the woman’s occupation is timeless. Boucher seems to suggest that humankind all exists on one plane, where each life is lived in the footsteps of the shadows before