Four Cows

George Hendrik Breitner's 'Four Cows' (1901) is an animal subject from the painter primarily known for his Amsterdam city scenes — his engagement with cattle as a subject placed him within the Dutch tradition of animal painting that extended from Paulus Potter through Albert Cuyp and Jan Both to his contemporaries in the Hague School. The four cows as a compositional subject gave him the opportunity to investigate animal form and behavior with the same direct observation he brought to all his subjects.

Breitner renders the four cows with his characteristic broad handling — the animals' specific forms and postures observed with the directness of a painter who looked closely at his subjects regardless of their conventional artistic status. His handling of the cattle in the landscape or farmyard setting creates the specific spatial context for the animal subject. The four cows' varied postures and their grouping within the composition create the formal interest within the apparently simple subject.