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GREGORY D. RIDLEY, JR. (1925 - 2004)
Battle of Chattanooga
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Copper repoussé frieze, mounted on a wood panel, 1963. 457x1727 mm; 18x68 inches (including
the panel). Signed and dated in repoussé, lower right recto. Signed, titled, numbered “No. 1” and
inscribed “Nov. 27, 1963, Copper Repoussé, Created on Great Battles of the Civil War, Nov. 24 -
25, 1863, 3,500 N, 2,500 South Died....” in ink, upper right verso.
Provenance: private collection,Tennessee.
This impressive battle scene in hammered copper is an excellent example of the copper repoussé
which artist Gregory Ridley is nationally known for.This is a panel from Ridley’s first and important
series of repoussé depicting fifteen battles of the Civil War.
A native of Smyrna, Tennessee, Gregory D. Ridley, Jr. and his family moved to Nashville in 1936,
where he was educated in the city’s public schools. After service in the United States Navy during
WorldWar II, he enrolled at Fisk University, where he studied under the artist Aaron Douglas, who