A Cavalry Battle

This 1767 cavalry battle by Philip James de Loutherbourg is an early work produced before the Alsatian painter emigrated to England in 1771. The military subject demonstrates the training in dramatic composition he received in Paris under Carle Vanloo and others. De Loutherbourg's theatrical oil technique deployed dramatic chiaroscuro and vivid atmospheric effects—glowing furnace light, moonlight on water, storm-raked sky—that he had developed through his work as a scene designer for David...

The battle scene is composed with dynamic energy, horses and riders interlocking in violent motion. De Loutherbourg's theatrical sense of drama is already evident in the strong contrasts of light and shadow.