Cow & calf in a Byre/Cattle & Goat Resting

Medium: Oil on board

Image Dimensions: 7½" x 7" (19.1cm x 17.8cm)

Price: £2,000.00 for the set

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This charming pair of oil paintings, Cow & Calf in a Byre and Cattle & Goat Resting, is attributed to the celebrated Victorian animal painter Thomas Sidney Cooper (1803–1902). Executed on board and conceived as companion pieces, the works capture the quiet dignity and pastoral beauty of rural farm life, a subject for which Cooper became one of the most admired British artists of the nineteenth century.

In Cow & Calf in a Byre, the artist presents an intimate study of maternal tenderness, the warm interior setting lending a sense of tranquillity and shelter. The companion work, Cattle & Goat Resting, offers a similarly peaceful rural scene, with the animals depicted in repose and observed with remarkable sensitivity. Together, the paintings demonstrate a keen understanding of animal character and behaviour, qualities that made Cooper’s work so highly sought after by Victorian collectors.

The attribution to Thomas Sidney Cooper is supported by the paintings’ careful observation of livestock, subtle handling of light, and naturalistic approach to composition. Cooper was renowned for elevating agricultural subjects beyond simple record-making, imbuing his cattle and farmyard scenes with both character and atmosphere. These qualities are evident throughout this appealing pair, where the animals are rendered with sympathy and confidence against understated rural settings.

Beautifully scaled and offered as a set, these paintings would make a delightful addition to a collection of Victorian sporting and animal art. Their complementary compositions create an engaging decorative ensemble while reflecting the enduring appeal of Britain’s pastoral traditions and the influence of one of the country’s foremost animal painters.