Twee putti met een schaap en een herdersstaf 1751 - 1816

Reinier Vinkeles created this print, "Twee putti met een schaap en een herdersstaf," which translates to "Two Putti with a Sheep and a Shepherd's Crook." Vinkeles was working in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, during a time when Europe was enamored with classical themes. The image presents an idyllic scene, a fantasy of rural life featuring putti, those chubby cherubs that often appeared in art to represent innocence and divine love, alongside symbols of pastoral life. The putti, along with the sheep and the shepherd’s crook, evoke a sense of gentle, untroubled existence. But consider this image within its historical context. During this time, such imagery was often used by the elite as a form of escapism, a romanticized contrast to the realities of social inequality and political unrest. Vinkeles offers us a window into the desires and fantasies of a society on the brink of transformation, inviting us to consider the complex relationship between art, power, and the human longing for peace.