Un Uhlan
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Bequest of George Campbell Cooper
Accession Number
1896-3-385
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Édouard Detaille (1848–1912), a leading French painter of military subjects, captured the drama of 19th-century warfare with realism. *Un Uhlan*, created around 1874, depicts a Prussian Uhlan—a lancer from the light cavalry units that played a key role in the Franco-Pr War (1870–71). As a print from the Smithsonian American Art Museum's collection, bequeathed by George Campbell Cooper, it reflects Detaille's fascination with the uniforms, equipment, and stoic figures of soldiers, even those from the enemy side during France's humiliating defeat. Detaille's style, rooted in Realism, emphasized...