Combat of Cavalry

Art Historical Context

Jacques Courtois, a 17th-century Italian artist also known as Giacomo Cortese or "il Borgognone specialized in dynamic battle scenes that captured the fury of combat. His *Combat of Cavalry*, a pen and bistre wash drawing on paper (7 3/4 x 11 in.), exemplifies his mastery of Baroque energy. Acquired through the Rogers Fund in 1946, this undated work resides in the Metropolitan Museum of's Department of Drawings and Prints, it stands as a testament to the preparatory power of sketches in the era. Rendered with fluid pen lines and subtle bistre washes—a brownish pigment derived from soot—Courtois evokes the chaos of clashing horsemen and soldiers. The medium's translucent tones allow for dramatic highlights and shadows, heightening the sense of motion and violence typical of 17th-century military art. These techniques were ideal for studies that could inform larger oil paintings, reflecting the period's fascination with heroic warfare amid Europe's ongoing conflicts, like the Thirty Years' War. For visitors, this intimate drawing offers a window into Baroque draftsmanship's immediacy, where every swirling horse and rearing figure pulses with life. It's a reminder of how paper works, often overshadowed by canvases, preserve an artist's raw vitality.

About the Artist

Jacques Courtois · 1621–1676

A specialist in battle paintings, he also painted religious and other scenes. As a teenager, Courtois left France for Italy with his young brother, Guillaume. He drew military campaigns, then studied in Bologna, Florence, and Siena, arriving in Rome by 1638. He worked primarily in Italy. He joined the Jesuit order in 1657.