Twee varkens bij hun hok 1788 - 1814

Jan Kobell the second, created this pen and grey ink drawing of ‘Two Pigs Near Their Sty’, sometime in the late 18th to early 19th century. The drawing offers us a fascinating study in contrasts. The composition divides itself into zones of activity. A sleeping pig dominates the foreground, its form rendered with soft, flowing lines. The horizontal orientation of the pig's body is juxtaposed with the verticality of the pig pen and the second pig behind it. Kobell uses line and texture to differentiate the resting pig from the active one. The choice of monochrome emphasizes the geometry of the shapes and highlights the surface quality. The image may appear quaint, however, it reflects a broader cultural interest in classifying and representing the natural world. The artwork invites us to consider how we impose order and meaning onto our environment through the act of observation and representation.