The Story
Paulus Potter (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈpʌulʏs ˈpɔtər]; 20 November 1625 (baptised) – 17 January 1654 (buried)) was a Dutch painter who specialized in landscapes featuring animals, often from a low vantage point. Before Potter died of tuberculosis at the age of 28 he produced about 100 paintings, working continuously.
Created in 1653 during the 1650-1700 period, this work belongs firmly within the power & politics tradition. Paulus Potter worked at a moment when the rivalry between Catholic Baroque drama and Protestant restraint reshaped what a painting could mean. Every gesture, fabric, and gleam of light was decoded by contemporary viewers like a private language.
Executed in On loan from the City of Amsterdam (A. van der Hoop Bequest), measuring height: 18; depth: 9.5; width: 20, the surface rewards close looking. Paulus Potter builds the composition through layered glazes and a tightly controlled palette, letting cool shadows recede so that the warm, lit passages step forward. The brushwork shifts from the precise to the almost dissolved — a hallmark of mature Baroque practice.
“A silence so complete it becomes its own witness.”
