Minna Stocks "spoiled Meal"

Minna STOCKS (1846–1928) Dogs in the Farmyard, 1872 Oil on canvas, 37 × 31 cm Signed and dated lower left: Minna Stocks 72 This charming work illustrates Minna Stocks' naturalistic sensibility. It depicts a large mastiff-type dog lying in the foreground, holding a bone between its paws, watched by a smaller, more lively black and tan dog. The scene takes place in a rustic courtyard, in front of a wooden doghouse and an old stone wall, where a few strands of straw accentuate the rural atmosphere. The contrast between the quiet strength of the large dog and the alert attitude of the smaller dog gives the composition a narrative and expressive dimension, typical of 19th-century animal art.