Template:POTD/2020-05-15
Bonaparte Crossing the Alps is an oil-on-canvas painting by French artist Paul Delaroche, completed in 1850. The work depicts Napoleon Bonaparte leading his army through the Alps on a mule, a journey they made during the War of the Second Coalition in the spring of 1800. Napoleon is portrayed as downcast, gaunt and chilled, his expressionless face displaying his weariness resulting from the long, arduous trek. This representation is in marked contrast to Jacques-Louis David's idealistic depiction of the same historical event in Napoleon Crossing the Alps, where the protagonist wears a pristine uniform, rides a fiery steed and is depicted as a hero. This painting is now in the collection of the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, England.Painting credit: Paul Delaroche