We're standing in front of a very large painting called The Horse Fair, which was painted by a woman artist, Rosa Bonheur, from 1852. The painting caused a sensation when it was first exhibited in the Salon of 1853. One art critic wrote that he felt as if he had to jump out of the way of the horses.

The picture shows a horse market. This was a time before automobiles, when horses were a principal means of transportation, and potential customers would sit on that grassy bank, which you see to your right, and watch as the trainers would lead the horses in a circle in front of them. Rosa Bonheur had to dress up like a man every time she went to sketch the scene. However, we know that she found male clothing more comfortable.

Rosa Bonheur retouched this canvas in 1855, which is why you might notice that she added the number “5” after the date. She sold it to a British art dealer, who exhibited it throughout England, and supposedly Queen Victoria even requested that it be brought to Buckingham Palace for a private viewing.

The Horse Fair has been one of the most popular paintings here at The Metropolitan Museum ever since Cornelius Vanderbilt purchased it for The Met in 1887.

Rebecca Rabinow, Modern and Contemporary Art.