Artists and the Civil War

         When Civil War photography wasn't around , artists painted and sketched scenes of the Civil War. Reporters helped sketch artists get a better visualization of the war. Alfred Waud was the nation's best known sketcher , who drew the war for the nation's pictorial press. As an artist he went into dangerous situations, for he was near fight scenes and tumult in the battle. However, he drew these scenes so intimately that his art became popular nationwide. The artist's first war sketch was of the Custer Division retiring from Mount Jackson in Shenandoah  Valley, Virginia on October 7, 1864. Not only sketch artists were common, but painting in the Art Industry changed as well. Homer Winslow was a famous painter and his paintings were popular amongst rural areas. After the war Winslow began to paint images of how after life was following the war. He painted images of  free slaves, soldiers, and the community life style in the post war era. Artists played a crucial role in displaying the feelings and society change during and after the Civil War.

Waud Alfred.Sketch.Photograph.n.d. Siege of Petersburg
Wikipedia.Web. 05 Jan.14.
  

Homer Winslow. Photograph.n.d. "Home Sweet Home"
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. 05 Jan.14.