w.h. van der nat sheep in the stable
In most cases sheep are painted as a part of the composition of a landscape and as members of a group. Willem Hendrik van der Nat is an important exception. He gave sheep individuality. Many of his sheep paintings are actually portraits. Van der Nat was a close friend of the painter Floris Verster. Both lived in Leyden. They met each other in 1881 when they both took a course at the Leyden Drawing Society Ars Aemula Naturae. I received my own painting education at this art school. Van der Nat started his career as a graphic artist. Just like Vincent van Gogh he was influenced by Millet. His early work as oilpainter was dominated by figures, painted in a graphic style. In Drenthe the subject of his paintings changed (landscapes, stable interiors, and animals) and the touch of his brush became more loose. Just like G.H. Breitner he used photographs as studies for his paintings. From 1900 until his death he stayed every summer in Drenthe (Oosterhesselen and Borger). His paintings of sheep are rather unique. He must have spent much time among the sheep. On the painting "sheep in the stable" van der Nat strikingly created the warm intimacy of a sheep stable.You can almost smell it. His portraits of sheep show his understanding of their nature. Van der Nat's sheep portraits contradict the common opinion that sheep are docile following members of a flock. They strikingly show that sheep have their own identity. The paintings of sheep by van der Nat are generally considered as the best part of his entire work