Zouave

Winslow Homer's sketch depicts a Union soldier in the distinctive uniform of a Zouave regiment—baggy trousers, short jacket, and wrapped leggings. These units, modeled on French North African infantry, became iconic during the Civil War. Homer, working as an illustrator for *Harper's Weekly*, documented the conflict with direct observation, developing a visual vocabulary that prioritized clarity and narrative punch. His economical line work and compositional directness influenced how sequential imagery would later convey action and character. This drawing exemplifies the illustrated journalism that gave rise to comic art's visual language: the legible figure, the isolated subject, the documentary impulse married to readable form.