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Gatson’s Soldier II merges historical portraiture with bold abstraction, creating a striking dialogue between past and present. This 3-run, 3-color photogravure / direct gravure with spit bite aquatint reimagines an 1864 albumen print of Sergeant Charles English of the 108th U.S. Colored Troops Infantry Regiment, sourced from the Liljenquist Family Collection in the Library of Congress. The direct gravure overlays the soldier’s image with vibrant yellow bands and a cosmic burst of magenta, symbolizing energy and transcendence. Gatson’s fusion of history and abstraction reclaims Black military narratives, making Soldier II both a tribute and a powerful act of remembrance.
