Wounded Horses Returning from the Front, France, 1918
Algernon Talmage, 1918
Algernon Talmage painted this touching scene of wounded horses in France in his role as an official artist during the First World War.
He had been commissioned by the Canadian War Memorials Fund and was attached to the Canadian Army Veterinary Corps.
Talmage’s painting shows the work of Canadian soldiers at one of the mobile units that were set up by the Corps to give first aid to wounded, sick or overworked horses. This may be the original painting of the subject exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1919, before
Talmage completed the larger version of the work that now hangs in the Canadian Senate Chamber in Ottawa. Talmage trained at the Herkomer School of Art in Bushey and was known for his vivid, Impressionist-style paintings. He exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy in London and was elected an Academician in 1929.
The acquisition of Wounded Horses Returning From the Front increases the representation of Commonwealth soldiers at the National Army Museum and also serves to illustrate the vital role played by horses in the First World War.
More information
Title of artwork, date
Wounded Horses Returning from the Front, France, 1918, 1918
Date supported
2021
Medium and material
Oil
Dimensions
76.2 x 107.95 cm
Total cost
31500
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