Morton Künstler

Hammer Galleries, New York
Private Collection, California (acquired from the above in 1994)

New York, Hammer Galleries, 1992
Roslyn, New York, Nassau Country Museum of Art, "The Civil War" The Paintings of Mort Künstler, January 11 - March 1, 1998
New York, Hammer Galleries, "The Civil War" The Paintings of Mort Künstler, March 31 - April 25, 1998
Roslyn, New York, Nassau County Museum of Art, "For Us the Living" The Civil War in Paintings by Mort Künstler, September 25, 2010 - January 9, 2011

 

Nassau Country Museum of Art, "The Civil War" The Paintings of Mort Künstler, Nassau Country Museum of Art, Roslyn, New York, 1998, p. 39, full color
James Robertson, Jr., "The Confederate Spirit" The Paintings of Mort Künstler, Rutledge Hills Press, pp. 100-101, 191, full color
Mort Künstler, The Civil War Art of Mort Künstler, Greenwich Workshop, 2004, pp. 166-167, full color
Mort Künstler, "The Civil War Paintings of Mort Künstler" Volume 3: The Gettysburg Campaign, Cumberland House, Nashville, 2007, pp. 142-148, 151, full color
James Robertson, Jr., "For Us the Living" The Art of Mort Künstler, Sterling Publishing, New York, 2010, pp. 162-163, full color

the canvas is not lined. SURFACE: in good condition. UNDER UV: no apparent inpainting.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Künstler is widely considered the foremost contemporary artist of  Civil War scenes. In this vivid depiction of the Battle of Gettysburg, the artist demonstrates his prowess as a painter of the genre. While searching for a scene "that had never been painted before," Künstler, known for his painstaking research, settled on this precise moment not only for its novelty, but for its astonishing tension: "I wanted to show both sides and I also wanted to make it an action piece... I knew I had my moment!"¹ The subject is the charge of Wade Hampton and George Armstrong Custer on the East Cavalry Field of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863. Painted in bold reds, blues and greens before a steel gray sky, the opposing forces storm towards one another, swords raised and horses racing, frozen in the very last moment before impact. The painting is remarkable not only for its pathos and deft execution, but for its precise rendering of history. In the introduction to For Us The Living, a monograph of Künstler's Civil War paintings, historian Harold Holzer writes, "Few have shown more skill, attention to accuracy, and reverence for the past than Mort Künstler."² Indeed, the title of the above work is itself drawn from the artist's research.  As he fearlessly led his men towards the Union troops, confederate General Hampton was heard to call above the clamor of the charge, "Keep to your sabers, men! Keep to your sabers!"³

1. mortkunstler.com
2. James Robertson, Jr., "For Us the Living" The Art of Mort Künstler, Sterling Publishing, New York, 2010, p. xi
3. mortkunstler.com