The Last Civil War Veteran
| Artist | Larry Rivers (American, 1923–2002) |
|---|---|
| Title | The Last Civil War Veteran |
| Date | 1970 |
| Medium | Color silkscreen with collage on paper |
| Dimensions | Image: 29 × 19 13/16 in. (73.7 × 50.3 cm) Sheet: 29 × 19 13/16 in. (73.7 × 50.3 cm) Framed: 31 1/4 × 23 3/8 × 1 1/2 in. (79.4 × 59.4 × 3.8 cm) |
| Credit Line | Gift of Mr. Saul Steinberg through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 80.90.24 |
| This artwork is currently off display. You may be able to see this artwork by filling out an art viewing room request. | |
A figure is lying in a bed with a Confederate flag, an incomplete American flag, and a Confederate uniform behind him. The figure is sketched, with only his face and hands rendered in color.
Combining an improvisational working method with a return to narrative subject matter, Larry Rivers provides an aesthetic bridge between Abstract Expressionism and Pop art. Among his favorite sources were “campy” history paintings and the mass media. A photograph of the last survivor of the Civil War in Life magazine (May 11, 1959) inspired a series of images exploring life, death, war, and heroism. Defining himself as both an artist and a political man, Rivers saw historical themes as a way of exposing hypocrisy and of illuminating contemporary issues—such as the Vietnam War. The fact that the man in the original photograph (Walter Williams) was revealed as a fraud also raises questions about truth in media, history, art, and politics. By using garish, unconventional colors, Rivers alters reality and challenges us to rethink our preconceptions.
| Printer | Styria Studio, New York |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Marlborough Gallery Inc. |
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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"The Last Civil War Veteran | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=80.90.24