Title of Artwork: “Highland Raid”
Artwork by Rosa Bonheur
Year Created 1860
Summary of Highland Raid
Queen Victoria, who had a particular fondness for Rosa Bonheur’s animal paintings, invited her to Scotland in 1855, where she met the artist. At this location, the artist sketched a few ideas, some of which she eventually turned into paintings, like Highland Raid.
All About Highland Raid
The subject matter was out of date, as the Scots had stopped raiding livestock in the 1850s and 1860s, when the article was written.
But the subject afforded Bonheur a fantastic opportunity to illustrate many types of hurting animals: goats, cows of varied races, hues, and textures of the fur.
Every subject in Bonheur’s painting exhibits the great anatomical studies that set it apart, as well as an exceptional location and skillful use of chiaroscuro.
To play with the background environment and open a patch of rough sea under a stormy leaden sky that is traversed by clear rays of sunlight is typical of the Scottish imaginative, thanks to the steepness of the terrain.
The actual heroes here are the living beings that are unable to communicate except through the strength of their muscles and the forced and restless stances they strike when racing.
As the observer stands in the middle of the herd, three bulls in the first row glance up at him.
The painting’s focal point is a black bull, depicted as a powerful, alert animal. He acts as an axis of symmetry to the picture through the spread ears, and the fixed gaze searching our attention.
It appears to be searching for an escape route, when a light bull with a high hoof appears in profile to the right. Each animal is not only physically described, but also has a particular kind of emotional character.
Information Citations
En.wikipedia.org, https://en.wikipedia.org/.
