Study for ‘Crusaders Sighting Jerusalem’ 1988

Edwin Austin Abbey made this study for ‘Crusaders Sighting Jerusalem’ with graphite on paper. It’s all about the process, right? You can see the artist working through the composition, feeling out the weight and presence of these figures through the pressure of the graphite. Look at the contrast between the dense hatching creating a dark background, almost like a storm cloud, and the lighter, sketchier marks defining the crusaders themselves. Notice how the texture of the paper shows through, giving the whole piece an airy, ethereal quality. The man at the front, hunched and armored, is rendered with such detail, you can almost feel the weight of his chainmail. It’s as if Abbey is inviting us into his thought process. The way this study captures a moment of both anticipation and exhaustion reminds me a bit of Delacroix, that sense of historical weight mixed with raw emotion. In the end, art's about those conversations across time, those echoes of feeling and form.