A Man and a Youth ploughing with Oxen
- Artist: Nicolaes Berchem
- Date: probably 1650-5
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Museum: The National Gallery
- Collection record: The National Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is the "A Man and a Youth ploughing with Oxen" by Nicolaes Berchem. The oxen are fine animals, well muscled and rich in colour. The man is strong, windswept and sunburnt. His massive arms labour at the primitive plough; his shirt is shabby, but gleams white and clean in the sun.
He leans back in a huge effort to shove the plough forward over the last lip of the hillside, digging in hard to have some effect on the unyielding soil. The scene would have been admired for itself, but also hints at the fortitude of the Dutch peasants who worked the land of the newly founded Dutch Republic.
Berchem's use of light is quite striking - it's cooler than what you'd typically find in Italian landscapes, and has a sea-blown feel to it. The landscape isn't flat like the Dutch coastal views either; these are imaginary hills or taken from sketches made possibly in Italy or prints in Berchem's collection.
This painting would have been treasured in a wealthy Dutch household, admired not only for its beauty but also as a testament to the hard work and resilience of the peasants who were creating new land through massive efforts like digging ditches and dykes.
See it in person
A Man and a Youth ploughing with Oxen hangs in The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
