Truck Convoy

John Singer Sargent

1918 · Watercolor and graphite on white wove paper · The American Wing

In June 1918, Sargent traveled to France as an official war artist for the British government. Commissioned to paint a picture commemorating the joint efforts of American and British troops, he spent four months along the Front, sketching and painting in watercolor as he searched for a subject. This watercolor is a study for the painting The Arrival of American Troops at the Front (Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma). Sargent planned the general setting for that composition, including the convoy and shattered trees. His bravura watercolor technique is evident in his rendering of the mottled bark and damaged branches of the trees.

Artist

John Singer Sargent

Date

1918

Medium

Watercolor and graphite on white wove paper

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950