John Singer Sargent was somewhat of a rarity, having achieved recognition and success as an artist during his lifetime. He was controversial as an artist- known for realism in a period when experimental forms like impressionism and cubism were in vogue. He was an intriguing person, intensely private, and almost a man without country. But his prodigious body of work is, above all, a stunning record of the time in which he lived.
The battle fought outside Richmond between May 31 and June 1, 1862 was desperate, confused, and exceptionally bloody, with the fate of the rebellion hanging in the balance.