Gino Severini, “War Train”, Oil on Linen, 1915, Museum of Modern Art, New York

This painting depicts a fast-moving train with soldiers shooting long, powerful guns. It is in the style of Futurism, an Italian modern movement that glorified technology, war, the dynamism of new objects, and the fast pace of urban life. It was founded by Marinetti, an Italian poet, and practiced by Boccioni, Giacomo Balla, and Severini.

WWI was raging on in Europe at this time and there was new military technology such as machine guns, chemical weapons, and cannons that were used to devastating effect. The painting has an aerial view, which reflects Severini’s Parisian studio that overlooked a train station. The fast movement of the train is broken down into flat, broad color planes that exemplify Cubism’s multiple perspectives seen simultaneously.

The smoke from the guns masks the background of ridged fields, which may hint at the destruction of the Italian countryside. The five shooters are a faceless, menacing, and threatening mass. There are also many interesting, specific details such as the rivets on the train and on the cannon.

“Armored Train” is similar to Francisco Goya’s “Third of May”, painted in1808, which shows a wall of unrecognizable oppressors shooting a defiant subject. However, unlike the Goya rendition, Severini’s painting has no identifiable victim; it’s just general chaos. Despite the violence, the colors are uplifting and the central line of composition thrusts upwards.