Finding Napoleon in Portland, Oregon Part 2

Jim Riswold (American, born 1957), Le Retraite de Napoléon, 2005, Ultrachrome inkjet print on Epson photo rag paper, Gift of the Artist, © Jim Riswold, 2005.80.1

The Portland Art Museum was one of those rare museums where I couldn’t find a work representing Napoleon Bonaparte or any aspect of his reign. An internet search through their collection, however, revealed this piece. It’s a photograph called Le Retraite de Napoléon (Napoleon’s Retreat). The artist Jim Riswold must have a dark sense of humor to create such a charming depiction of Napoleon’s disastrous invasion of Russia. It’s not currently on display in the museum.

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