Sketch of Horses Standing in Water c. 1847

This is a pen and ink drawing of horses in a landscape, created by the Scottish artist John Burnet sometime in the early to mid-19th century. It’s a quick sketch, not a finished picture. During this period, the British art world was increasingly interested in images of rural life, often romanticising it. Landseer’s paintings of stags and dogs were hugely popular, for example. It’s easy to see this drawing as a simple rural scene, of a type that had become a hot commodity by this time. But Burnet, and indeed Landseer, were also interested in the relationship between humans and animals in a rapidly industrialising nation. Horses, like those shown here, were crucial to agriculture and transport but were gradually being replaced by machines. Further research into Burnet’s other works, and the collecting habits of his patrons, might reveal more about the social context of this deceptively simple drawing.