In yesterday's post I wrote about Constant Troyon, a French master of great talent. He worked a lot in the Pays-Bas and picked up the rare skill of Dutch painters to draw animals in movement and express their emotions. The idea to write a few words about Troyon was induced by our recent visit to the Moscow Gallery of the European and American art of the XIX and XX centuries. Actually there is only one canvas of this painter - "The running dogs".
However, it made me remember a lot of pictures where we can find figures of dogs. Why artists refer so often to dogs, while there a lot of other animals who live with us, cats, for example? We can find dogs in a great variety of painted scenes. In the Royal palace as on the Velazquez's canvas, or with children who are dragging a heavy cask of water (Perov). A dog quitely lies with a sleeping girl (Deriy), supports silently boy's tricks (Makovskiy), or follows an old warrior till his final hour (Durer). Images of dogs can strengthen the main idea or atmosphere of the picture: loneliness, quietness, despair or easiness. Quite often a dog is painted as the only true friend - as for young sons of Edward IV, imprisoned in the Tower (Delaroch).
Indeed, dogs are always with us, even in most dramatic moments of our life. May be it would be fair to always remember about it.
