Naval Combat

The sketch-like quality of this portrayal of an unidentified sea battle suggests it is a study for a more finished work. The son of Jean-Baptiste Isabey, who was a miniature painter and costume designer at the Napoleonic court, Eugène abandoned his father's Classical style, turning instead to the Romantic school for inspiration. He developed an interest in historical and marine painting through his friendship with the artists Eugène Delacroix and Richard Parkes Bonington, becoming one of the first French painters to work out of doors.