The Army of the Potomac - A Sharp-Shooter on Picket Duty
1862
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
1862
ink
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
A soldier sits hunched in a tree, gripping a rifle. His coat is dark, blending into the branches around him. A pot hangs from a nearby limb, and the ground below is tangled with bare trees. The whole scene is drawn in sharp black lines against a light background. This is a wood engraving, not a painting—notice the crisp, repeated lines that build up shadows and texture. The artist focused on the quiet tension of a guard’s job, far from battle. Next, look up engraving to see how artists like this carved images into wood.
![Soldier Taking Aim [recto]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/59bbf30d729c412f/thumb.webp)
