The series of pictures of hayricks Clausen did between about 1890 and 1910 are reminiscent of Claude Monet's (1840-1926) series of Haystack pictures, c.1890. Where Monet concentrates only on the light effects, Clausen is interested in the people making the hayrick. His interest in rural life, rendered with a slightly romanticised heroism, was influenced by the great mid-nineteenth century French painter, J.F. Millet (1814-75).