HERRING, John Frederick Sr. (1795 - 1865).
Horses in a Yard.
Oil on canvas.
1851.
16” x 16” canvas, 24” x 24” framed.

The onset of the Industrial Revolution brought great prosperity to Britain but also nostalgia for the countryside as it once was, untouched by progress. There was a growing demand for paintings of the rural idyll and for scenes depicting farm animals. However, this type of painting also became the ideal genre in which proud owners could display their prized animals. The foundation of the Linnean Society in 1788, named after the creator of the now universal system of nomenclature for plants and animals, expressly encouraged ‘the cultivation of the Science of Natural History in all its branches.’ Thus, the systematic breeding of the thoroughbred horse, the foxhound and farm livestock encouraged the field of animal portraiture in which famous sires and prize-winning cattle and sheep were presented. Here are a prime example by Herring Jr. & Sr. that shows this new style.