The artwork, titled “The Barricade (Civil War),” was created by Édouard Manet in 1871 in Paris, France. The medium used for this artwork is a combination of ink and watercolor on paper. It falls within the Realism art movement and is categorized as a sketch and study genre.
In this evocative and vivid portrayal, the artwork captures a scene from the civil unrest during the Paris Commune. The composition illustrates a dramatic confrontation, where a group of soldiers is seen aiming their weapons at a barricade, behind which figures appear in disarray, shrouded in the chaos of the moment. The architectural elements and the use of shadows intensify the sense of disarray and tumult. Manet’s use of quick, expressive brush strokes and a monochromatic palette of ink and watercolor lends the scene a raw, unfiltered quality, reflecting the urgency and gravity of the historical moment.
