Tapestry - Shepherd

In the foreground, the figure of a shepherd, with his back turned towards the viewer, and cut off above the waist, is shown shepherding his flock home. The top border of the tapestry cuts into his rimmed hat, the bottom border into his long, embroidered felt coat. He turns his watching face in semi-profile, holding the shepherd's hook in his left. The folkloric, vivid red colours of the coat and the ornaments of the side borders, depicting folkloric objects, are in sharp contrast with the reserved picture of the background, the contoured shapes of the sheep and the unshaded yellow and brown of the buildings and haystacks. This tapestry connects European Art Nouveau trends with a subject matter and decorating motifs of Hungarian folk art. The Shepherd was first exhibited at the 1899 Christmas exhibition, then at the 1900 Paris International Exhibition. Two further variants can be found in the collection of Móra Ferenc Museum in Szeged (Inv.No. Ip. 78.10.1) and another one in a private collection in Pécs.