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On to Liberty

1867
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 762
Before coming to the United States in 1850, Kaufmann studied painting in his native Germany and fought in the 1848 popular uprisings in favor of German national unity. As a Union soldier in the American Civil War, he may have seen Confederate troops retreating with enslaved men, leaving behind women and children. Here, his portrayal of a group of fleeing figures indicates the lack of a clear route to liberty. Kaufmann based his Civil War scene on an 1859 composition of a similar subject, set in Brazil, by the French painter François-Auguste Biard.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: On to Liberty
  • Artist: Theodor Kaufmann (American (born Germany), Uelzen 1814–1896 New York)
  • Date: 1867
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 36 x 56 in. (91.4 x 142.2 cm)
  • Credit Line: Gift of Erving and Joyce Wolf, in memory of Diane R. Wolf, 1982
  • Object Number: 1982.443.3
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing

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