If You Want to Go: The Art of the Battlefield

If You Want to Go monuments like the Louisiana and Mississippi, that were placed appropriately in respect to the Confederate soldiers they represent. But inadvertently they eventually created spectacular interest as a result of their position to the rising sun each morning. People show up now just to see what it looks like and take a photo, even joggers. One said to me: “I might see something that I’ve never seen before . . . and I’ve seen it hundreds of times!” Gettysburg is the ultimate museum of art in nature. And like any gallery, there is ample information at the park, and online, as to the origin of each monument, its sculptor, date of installment, and details of service. Th e proof of this can be found in the number of people who’ve studied not just the history of the battle, but the position of the “art” and the best times throughout the year to observe it. Personally, I don’t have a favorite. Rather, I have dozens of favorites; and the longer I visit Gettysburg the more I discover and the longer my list grows. Obviously, the statue of Gen. G. K. Warren atop Little Round Top is on every connoisseur’s list because of the magnifi cent vista of the battlefi eld looking west. Tens of thousands of photos— probably millions— have been made of this by people hoping to capture that perfect sunset silhouette. In fact, you rarely see people pay attention to “Gouverneur” in the morning hours when the sun doesn’t favor him as much. But over the years I’ve found that weather creates an image of the Warren monument that’s just as interesting and eyecatching. With so much space between him and South Mountain in the distance, it’s possible to see a summer storm in the distance while the monument itself is bathed in foreground sunlight. Notice the puddles of water from a passing If You Want to Go Th e Art of the Battlefi eld