Who painted Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy?

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy was painted by Eastman Johnson in 1867.

Where can I see Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy?

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy is held by Brooklyn Museum.

What movement is Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy?

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy is associated with Realism.

Artwork

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy

Eastman Johnson , 1867

Study for 'The Wounded Drummer Boy is an oil painting by the Realist artist Eastman Johnson. It dates from 1867 and is held in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum.

About this work

Overview

Eastman Johnson’s 1867 oil painting, Study for ‘The Wounded Drummer Boy,’ captures a fleeting moment of wartime fatigue. Executed in the realist tradition, the work presents a young drummer being borne aloft by a companion, set against a muted landscape that hints at a battlefield’s periphery. The canvas now resides in the Brooklyn Museum’s collection.

Subject & Meaning

The central figure is a child drummer, his instrument and sticks clutched tightly, suggesting his role in a military march. He is supported by an adult who balances a canteen, implying a pause for care amid conflict. The composition conveys both the vulnerability of youth in war and the camaraderie that sustains them.

Technique & Style

Johnson employs a restrained palette, warm hues for the figures that contrast with cooler, atmospheric tones in the background. The brushwork delineates form while allowing subtle gradations of light, echoing the chiaroscuro techniques of Dutch masters. This handling creates depth and a sense of motion, as if the scene is captured in mid‑step.

History & Provenance

After studying in The Hague in the 1850s, Johnson returned to the United States and co‑founded the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He produced this study as part of a larger composition on the Civil War. The painting entered the Brooklyn Museum’s holdings in the early twentieth century, where it remains on view.

Artist & collection

Artist

Eastman Johnson

Jonathan Eastman Johnson (July 29, 1824 – April 5, 1906) was an American painter and co-founder of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, with his name inscribed at its entrance.