Our Department Assaults An Enemy Trap On The Top Of The Tuckett Spitz, At 3469 Meters 1915

Achille Beltrame's image shows us soldiers clambering up a mountain, painted with a soft palette of greys, blues and browns, with touches of ochre in the sky, which gives the work a somewhat gentle feel despite the subject matter. I can imagine Beltrame, brush in hand, carefully building up the scene, layer by layer, trying to capture the cold, the danger, and the sheer physical effort of the climb. The paint looks quite thin, almost like watercolor in places, which lends a sense of fragility to the whole scene. Look at the soldier reaching out to grab the rock face: that gesture alone, rendered with such delicate brushwork, speaks volumes about the desperation and determination of these men. Beltrame was an illustrator, and you can really sense that in his attention to the smallest details, much like in the work of someone like Winslow Homer, who documented scenes of American life. It’s like they are all in conversation, each adding their own perspective to the human story. Ultimately, this work is a poignant reminder of the human capacity for both great courage and unspeakable violence. It doesn’t offer answers, but rather invites us to reflect on the complexities of human experience.