Southern Bias?

Letter from a fan:

I'm a Civil War addict from the UK and an admirer of Mr Kunstler's Civil War art. It really seems to evoke a true feeling of key events/battles and with the obvious attention to detail, you do get the impression that you're really there.

One thing that strikes me is the concentration on Southern subjects, particularly Lee & Jackson, and an apparent interest in 'Lost Cause' romanticism. I think Mr Kunstler was born in New York, so I'm fascinated to know what inspires this leaning towards The South? I think someone once said that although the Southern soldiers were good fighters, 'it was the worst cause for which anyone ever fought'. However, as someone from the UK, (and with no US/Southern heritage) I must say that I also seem inexplicably drawn to the South. Perhaps it's the enigmatic military leaders? The victories inspired by Lee and Jackson often against a vastly numerically superior enemy never cease to amaze me. Perhaps the amazing fortitude shown, particularly in the latter part of the war? The nobility and honour of the Southern gentleman? Many were not slave-holders but still fought for a cause they believed in.

Although I'm sure it's not very PC these days to admire people who essentially fought to preserve an evil institution, I guess they were 'men of their time' and can't be entirely judged by today's standards. I would be really interested to understand Mr. Kunstler's point of view on this, and why he also shares this apparent Southern bias'?.

Mr. Künstler's response:

Mr. Künstler does not use a computer, so he has asked me to respond to your kind email. He appreciated your observations and had this to say...

First, while he has done at least one Union picture every year, he admits that the Confederacy is much more fun to paint. The more prosperous Union soldiers were all dressed the same, and in a lineup they all looked the same. In contrast, the Confederate soldiers were a rag tag bunch. They all dressed differently and this makes for more interesting images and subjects to paint.

Secondly, during the preparation of several of Mr. Künstler's Civil War art books ("Images of the Civil War", "Gettysburg," and "Jackson and Lee,") he became acquainted with, and later a good friend of, the foremost Jackson biographer, historian James Robertson. This partnership has helped make Mort Künstler the "visual biographer" of Jackson and Lee.

"...and the Generals were brought to tears"

Mr. Kunstler,

I am writing this to you, with provoked emotion, in regards to your painting entitled “The Generals Were Brought To Tears.” I saw this beautiful picture once, years ago, and I wanted to share the reason I have found such profound identification in your works, most indiscriminately this one in particular. I am a 28 year-old medically retired Army Captain, and was once a tank commander and platoon leader for the U.S. Army in Iraq. On January 26, 2006 I, an officer in 4th Infantry Division, was leading a platoon of soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division. The chance of attack was imminent, and I knew this as well as any man out there walking with a rifle, and with our heads, individually, on swivels. I told a young private from the 101st to get behind me once I realized he was becoming nerve-racked in anticipation of the imminent roadside bomb that would meet us with a smile of shrapnel ahead, which is precisely when I took the lead of the formation. Some will say this was an act of bravery, but I assure you it was not, as I was almost entirely selfish in this act. I could not bear to see any soldiers wounded or killed, if I could prevent it. So, I shielded them all with my own body, and within one kilometer, sure enough, an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) detonated, sending scolding shrapnel through both my legs, my right arm, and the right side of my head and neck. The artery in my right foot was severed but it wasn’t long before “dustoff” (or a Medevac) came to rescue me out of there and fly me to the nearest base for medical attention. I should also tell you that I have no regrets about that day, and if I could do it again I would, in a heartbeat, because of one very important thing that the Generals knew as well as I do now: there must be something beyond one’s self.

Since that time I have learned to walk again, use my right arm and hand again, and have just recently finished my master’s degree in business administration. I now live in Texas, but have not forgotten the profound effect your picture had on me the first day I saw it. I can tell you quite frankly that I was never much of a crier before, but since the day I was wounded I have been brought to tears, not for myself but for all those others whom I could no longer protect, more times than God could count. I have seen Soldiers and Marines give sight, limbs, memory, unburned skin, restful nights of sleep, pain-free lives, and so much more. I know why the Generals were brought to tears Mr. Kunstler, because their eyes laid witness to the dichotomy of service and sensibility, that there was no glory in any regard including that in the service of Providence, and that the benefits of their actions would never outweigh the costs. I have come to accept these as truths, and I see myself sitting beside the Generals, beside your grandson Tommy, and beside a flag that may always change color and pattern, but never virtue. I sit beside them all, as a ghost among many, clinging to the hope that humanity will learn the lesson which resides in the eyes of your work, in the eyes of the Generals.

v/r,

Sean M. Thomas
CPT, US Army (Ret.)

"The only thing that walks back from the tomb with the mourners and refuses to be buried is the character of a man." ........J.R. Miller