River Gorge Above Lalpura

1879

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century Ireland

Dominant colour

River Gorge Above Lalpura is a 1879 by John Burke, a Impressionism work, depicting Ireland, held at Cleveland Museum of Art.

Who painted this?: John Burke
When & what style?: 1879 · Impressionism
Where can I see it?: Cleveland Museum of Art

About this work

You’re looking at a deep river gorge with steep cliffs and a narrow path winding along the edge. The sky is hazy, and the rocks glow in soft light. This painting is actually based on a photograph by John Burke, who documented the Second Anglo-Afghan War. At the time, cameras couldn’t capture fast action, so artists like this one turned battlefield landscapes into paintings instead. If you like quiet, dramatic scenes like this, check out the work of John Burke (Irish, 1845–1915)—his photos shaped how we picture war zones today.

The story of this work

Overview

The subject of this album is the Second Anglo-Afghan War, which was fought from 1878 to 1880. John Burke was the first photographer to photograph extensively in Afghanistan and the main photographer covering that conflict. The technology of the day did not permit action shots of battles. As is usual for early conflict photography, the pictures are landscapes of the sites of momentous incidents, views of camps and civil and military infrastructure, and portraits of the soldiers and their leaders.