Landscape with Cows, Cowherd and Dog
- Artist: Jean-François Millet
- Date: (19th century) 1800 - 1899
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Museum: The Courtauld Gallery
- Collection record: The Courtauld Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is the “Landscape with Cows, Cowherd and Dog” painted by Jean‑François Millet in the 19th century, rendered in oil on canvas. The scene opens on a wide, gently rolling field that stretches toward a hazy horizon, where the sky is a soft wash of ochre and muted blues. Millet places a solitary cow in the foreground, its dark body contrasting with the lighter grass, drawing the eye toward the lower right corner where a modest thatched cottage sits beside a stone path. The cowherd—a modestly dressed figure in a rough cloak—stares out with a calm, almost reverent expression, his hand resting on the saddle of a quiet horse. A loyal dog lies beside him, its posture relaxed yet alert. Millet’s brushwork is thick and textured in the lower areas, giving the landscape a palpable sense of earthiness, while the upper portions are looser, suggesting the vastness of the sky. The composition balances rural labor with pastoral serenity, capturing the quiet dignity of everyday life in rural France.
See it in person
Landscape with Cows, Cowherd and Dog hangs in The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House, London. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
