Jacques Courtois (1621-1676) - Battle scene between Christians and Turcs

Jacques Courtois or Giacomo Cortese was born on February 12, 1621 in Saint-Hippolyte, county of Burgundy and died on November 14, 1676 in Rome. He was a painter and engraver of battle scenes. He was also called the Burgundian of battles. In our composition, the painter accurately depicts the chaos and ferocity of the battlefield between Christians and Turks. The artist expresses through his attention to details and his removed touch rich in material, the shock of the riders, the muscles of the horses, as well as the agony of the wounded. Today the work of Jacques Courtois can be found in the greatest museums in the world: the Louvres (Paris), the Uffizi Gallery and the Pitti Palace (Florence), the Prado Museum (Madrid), the Museum of Hermitage (St. Petersburg) etc. Gian Lorenzi Bernini commented: "Among the painters of that time in Europe, none equaled Courtois in the graphic expression of the horror of battle" (in Salvagnini, FA, I pittori borgognoni, Cortese, Rome, 1937, p. 185).