A Dawn 1914

Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson

1916 · Drypoint · Drawings and Prints

A Dawn, 1914 depicts a mass of French soldiers moving swiftly through winding city streets. The zigzag line of repeated forms and figures is seemingly endless, an impression emphasized by the dramatic receding perspective and elevated vantage point. Most of Nevinson’s images of soldiers show them on a battlefield or lined up on a desolate road. Here, despite the power of their raised bayonets, which seem to puncture the air, the troops are evidently fatigued, and their position reveals them to be exposed and vulnerable to attack. The war imagery, repetitive geometric shapes, and sense of force and speed demonstrate Nevinson’s interest in Futurism; he diverged from the movement, however, in refusing to extol warfare.

Artist

Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson

Date

1916

Medium

Drypoint

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Purchase, Leslie and Johanna Garfield Gift, Lila Acheson Wallace, Charles and Jessie Price, and David T Schiff Gifts, The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, Dolores Valvidia Hurlburt Bequest, Peco Foundation and Friends of Drawings and Prints Gifts, and funds from various donors, 2019