Willem Maris was a 19th century Dutch painter whose subjects were primarily pastoral scenes of cattle and fowl, though he also painted figurative subjects.
Though his choice of themes remained with him through his career, his approach to painting changed — from straightforward realism to experiments with bold color to the kind of painterly brushwork and broken color associated with Impressionism, leading to his reputation as a “Dutch Impressionist”.
Also consistent through his career was a fascination with the play of light on his subjects, a fascination that naturally dovetailed with his interest in impressionistic effects. Maris worked in both oil and watercolor, as well as producing a number of drawings.