Landschap met schapen, geit en koeien 1766 - 1830

Dirk van Oosterhoudt created this landscape with sheep, goats, and cows using etching, sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century. Think about the process of etching, the way a metal plate is coated, inscribed, and then bitten with acid to create a matrix for printing. It’s a laborious process, and not easily repeatable, unlike other printmaking methods like woodcut. The fine lines and delicate shading wouldn’t have been easy to create. Look closely, and you can see the density of work that has gone into representing the animals and foliage. This was an era when printmaking was less about mass production and more about artisanal skill. Oosterhoudt’s choice of etching speaks to a desire for control and refinement, elevating the image beyond mere reproduction. It’s a world of craft meeting commerce, where the hand of the artist is still very present, even in a repeatable medium. So when you look at this print, you’re not just seeing a pastoral scene. You’re seeing the labour of its making.