February
1772
Medium
Black chalk, brown, black or gray ink and watercolor
Dimensions
sheet: 5 3/16 x 7 7/16 in. (13.1 x 18.9 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Charles and Jessie Price Gift, 2005
Accession Number
2005.249.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
**February** by Hendrik Meijer created in 1772, captures a vivid snapshot of 18th-century Dutch rural life. This intimate drawing depicts men at work amid windmills and boats, evoking the industrious spirit of the Netherlands' lowlands. Rendered on a modest sheet measuring 5 3/16 x 7 7/16 inches (13.1 x 18.9 cm), it likely portrays a February scene—perhaps hinting at winter labors like ice navigation or milling preparations—common in Dutch imagery that celebrated the harmony between people and their watery landscape. Meijer employed a delicate mixed-media technique: black chalk for subtle mod...