Farm cottages with a white horse

Farm Cottages with a White Horse from 1645 by Cuyp depicts rural buildings and a conspicuous white horse, combining architectural and animal painting. The white horse provides a brilliant accent in the pastoral composition. 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 white horse stands out against the rustic buildings and landscape, rendered with Cuyp's careful observation of animal form and rural architecture.