Artwork
A Team of Percheron Horses
A Team of Percheron Horses is an oil painting by the Realist artist Guillaume Urban Régamey. It dates from 1870 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Guillaume Urban Régamey’s oil painting titled A Team of Percheron Horses was completed in 1870 and is part of the collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum. The work depicts a tranquil rural scene featuring three horses, a cart, and a standing figure, rendered in a calm, atmospheric style.
Subject & Meaning
The composition centers on a trio of horses—one white and two brown—two of which pull a black cart with a prominent white‑spoked wheel. A man in a white shirt and dark trousers stands beside the vehicle, his back turned to the viewer, suggesting a moment of pause within everyday labor.
Technique & Style
Régamey employs chiaroscuro to model the forms, using contrasts of light and shadow to give the horses and cart a three‑dimensional presence. The sky is rendered in soft blues with scattered white clouds, reinforcing the painting’s serene ambience.
History & Provenance
Created in the early years of the French Third Republic, the painting entered the Victoria and Albert Museum’s holdings, where it remains on display as an example of 19th‑century French genre painting.
Artist & collection
