1904.8
Council of War
Artist
Hermanus Willem Koekkoek
(Amsterdam, 1867 (active in London between 1887-1901) - 1929)
Title
Council of War
Creation Date
1867-1927
Century
19th-20th century
Dimensions
34 1/4 in. x 49 5/8 in. (87 cm. x 126.1 cm.)
Object Type
painting
Creation Place
Europe, Netherlands
Medium and Support
oil on canvas
Credit Line
Bequest of Miss Mary Sophia Walker
Copyright
Public Domain
Accession Number
1904.8
Hermanus Willem Koekkoek came from a family of Dutch artists and was trained in Amsterdam by his father Willem. Though he was born three years before the Franco-German War of 1870–71, he made it one of his most recurrent subjects. In this painting of an episode in that conflict, Koekkoek depicts a group of French officers on horseback who have gathered to deliberate not far from the frontlines of an active battle. Germany’s victory in this war led to the fall of the Second French Empire and the reunification of Germany. When Mary Sophia Walker bequeathed this painting in 1904, tensions between Germany and France were once again escalating.
Object Description
landscape scene of calvary--officers and soldiers; white mounted horse in center with mounted riders behind; standing figure at right, wagon in left middle ground; gray skies, barren fields, stand of trees to right; original gilded frame
