# Shepherdess, known as ‘Monumental Conception of Humanity’

- By: Matthijs Maris (The Hague, 1839–1917)
- Date: c. 1885 - c. 1898
- Medium: canvas, oil paint (paint)
- Classification: painting
- Dimensions: depth 9.5 cm
- Credit line: J.H. van Meurs-Cohen van Straaten Bequest
- Museum: [Rijksmuseum](https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/object/SK-A-4920--de1e493b0bb0a5baf61479bbec6b86ca)
- Rights: [Public Domain Mark](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/)
- Picture: https://invisiblenetwork.ai/thumbs/web/ed4913664607b248eb04476dcd32b3b2.jpg
- Who can see it: Tweens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

This large painting of a shepherdess was for a staircase and meant to be seen from below. As for all of his conceptions, Maris wished to erase the traces of the production process. Here he worked with successive layers of pastose paint which he ‘pressed’ into the canvas, creating a matte surface with a rugged texture. He also had the frame made especially for this picture.