Shepherd

This painting portrays a village boy, a shepherd tending a flock of grazing sheep. The standing boy is playing the violin, and is dressed in an oversized brown coat, dark-coloured trousers rolled up at the cuffs, and a tattered straw hat. His face bears a dreamy expression evoked by the music. At his feet lies a white mongrel dog. In the extensive meadow that forms the background, sealed off at the horizon by a forest, a flock of sheep grazes. The grass, turned rust-coloured from the sun, and the boy’s woollen coat suggest that the scenes takes place in early autumn. The long shadows and warm light of the setting sun indicate that the time of day is late afternoon on a pleasant day.