A Riding School with a Visiting Family
1778
Medium
Pen and brown ink, brush and gray ink; framing line in pen and brown ink
Dimensions
Sheet: 11 in. × 16 9/16 in. (28 × 42 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Anonymous Gift, 2015
Accession Number
2015.752.6
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the elegant drawing *A Riding School with a Visiting Family* (1778), Dutch artist Dirk Langendijk captures a lively equestrian scene bustling with activity. Created during the late Enlightenment era in the Netherlands, the work depicts a riding school—a prestigious venue where the elite honed their horsemanship skills, a mark of social status and refinement. Langendijk's composition features men astride horses, a visiting family observing the spectacle, and even dogs adding a touch of everyday charm, evoking the leisurely pursuits of 18th-century urban life. Rendered in pen and brown ink w...