Shepherd with His Flock in a Clearing
Medium
Brush, brown wash over black chalk. Framing lines in pen and brown ink.
Dimensions
10 9/16 x 13 5/16 in. (26.8 x 33.8 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1961
Accession Number
61.164
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the serene pastoral scene *Shepherd with His F in a Clearing* (1776), French artist Jean-Baptiste Le Prince the timeless harmony of rural life. A lone shepherd tends his flock amid a wooded glade, evoking the idyllic Arcadian landscapes popular in 18th-century European art. Le Prince who traveled extensively to Russia and drew inspiration from folk traditions, infused his works with a picturesque charm, blending realism with romantic nostalgia during the Enlightenment era's fascination with nature and simplicity. This drawing exemplifies Le Prince's mastery of mixed media: a fluid black chalk underdrawing provides structure, overlaid with expressive brown wash to model forms and evoke atmospheric depth. Delicate pen-and-brown-ink framing lines suggest it was a finished study, possibly preparatory for printmaking—a technique Le Prince championed to disseminate his genre scenes. At 10 9/16 x 13 5/16 inches, its intimate scale invites close contemplation of the sheep's woolly textures, leafy branches, and dappled light. Acquired through the Rogers Fund in 1961, this gem from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints collection highlights Le Prince's role in bridging French Rococo elegance with emerging Romantic sensibilities, offering visitors a window into 18th-century dreams of pastoral escape.
About the Artist
Jean-Baptiste Le Prince · 1734–1781
Comment on works: Genre; Landscapes; Portraits; Copper engraver; Illustrator; Master draughtsman