The Return from the Pasture

In the foreground of this picturesque scene, a man and his dog (center) lead a herd of seven cows across a shallow stream (at right side of image). On the opposite bank sheltered by tall trees, there is a stone cottage with a slate (or shingled) roof (central middleground). At the cottage entry, a woman looks out of the top half of a Dutch door. At left, a rustic wooden bridge crosses the stream, and a dirt path leads to the cottage. In the far right background, a cluster of cottages are depicted beyond a field. The artist made several variations of this subject--each published by Currier & Ives.

Nathaniel Currier, who established a successful New York-based lithography firm in 1835, produced thousands of hand-colored prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life. Expansion led, in 1857, to a partnership with James Merritt Ives (1824–1895), the brother-in-law of Nathaniel's brother Charles. People eagerly acquired Currier & Ives lithographs, such as those featuring spectacular American landscapes, or rural and city views, hunting and fishing scenes, domestic life and numerous other subjects, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments.

Although it was unusual for a woman to achieve prominence in a printing business, Frances Flora ("Fanny") Palmer fulfilled an important role for the Currier and Ives firm. When she moved to New York from England in 1844, she was already an accomplished artist and printmaker. Initially, Fanny and her husband Seymour operated a small print-shop in lower Manhattan, similar to one they had run in Leicester (United Kingdom). In 1849, after their business closed, the couple moved to Brooklyn. Nathaniel Currier began to buy print designs from Palmer around this time; after 1857, she became a staff artist for Currier & Ives, eventually producing more than 200 prints. Today, Palmer is regarded as a leading woman lithographer of the period.