Cows and Figures in a Hilly Landscape

Cows and Figures in a Hilly Landscape from 1660 by Cuyp combines his beloved cattle subjects with the rolling terrain of the eastern Netherlands. The hilly landscape provides unusual topographic variety in the typically flat Dutch landscape. Cuyp worked primarily in Dordrecht throughout his career, and his paintings of the Dutch countryside—cattle in golden light, river views, and horsemen against luminous skies—established him as one of the most technically accomplished landscape painters of the Dutch Golden Age.

The cattle and figures are bathed in Cuyp's warm golden light, the hilly terrain providing depth and variety within the characteristically luminous pastoral composition.