Beating a Retreat

This oil version of Beating a Retreat is an excellent example of the finished compositions that Miller prepared for his patrons after he returned to Baltimore. The detail of the riding figure is exquisite, with elements of color—the beading on the rider’s legging, the strips of blue at his waist, the red ribbon at his ankle and the blanket billowing from his saddle, his bear claw necklace, his feathered headdress—to catch the viewer’s eye. And, as a good romantic, Miller has provided the horse with anthropomorphic character as well—in this case fear and apprehension as he senses he and his rider are in grave danger.

Ron Tyler

Artist

Alfred Jacob Miller

Date

Unknown

Catalogue Number

384A

Medium

Oil on Canvas

Inscriptions

LR: AJMiller

The artist; [?]; Victor Spark, New York, NY, 1946; [?] present owner