Twee koeienkoppen 1831 - 1904

Arnoud Schaepkens created this image of two cow heads using etching. It is not clear when Schaepkens made this particular print, but we can say that he was active in a period that saw significant transformations in Dutch agriculture and its relationship to art. The 19th century witnessed the rise of agricultural societies and exhibitions, where livestock was celebrated and commodified. Artists like Schaepkens played a role in popularizing rural imagery, reinforcing a certain idealized view of agrarian life. As art historians, we can look at things such as exhibition catalogues, agricultural journals, and other records to understand the social and economic context in which Schaepkens worked, and the changing perceptions of rural life and labor in the Netherlands. We then begin to see this simple image as bound to institutional shifts.