Landscape with Figures and Horses in the Foreground 1638 - 1687

Gillis Neyts made this drawing, Landscape with Figures and Horses in the Foreground, with pen and brown ink. The artwork depicts a landscape with a high horizon line. A steep hill rises on the right side of the drawing, topped with buildings that could be fortifications. In the foreground, small figures walk and converse near horses pulling a cart. Neyts was working in the Netherlands during its Golden Age, a period when Dutch art began to reflect the values and interests of a growing merchant class. The depiction of ordinary people in a detailed landscape reflects a growing sense of national and regional pride. It is a far cry from the religious commissions that dominated art a century earlier. Neyts produced many drawings, but he was also involved in the Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp. Guilds like this were a powerful force in the art market, and understanding them can help us better understand the business of art in this period. To appreciate this artwork fully, we can study not only the work itself, but also the economic and social structures that shaped its creation.