Brandywine Stories: Art as Witness

In a shaded Victorian studio in Downingtown, artist Adrian Martinez brings the Revolutionary War to life — one hour at a time. A classically trained painter whose work fuses technical precision with emotional depth, Martinez is internationally recognized, with paintings in public and private collections across the U.S. and Europe.

Now, Martinez turns his masterful eye to a subject close to home: the Battle of Brandywine. In a new series of 12 monumental oil paintings — one for each hour of the pivotal day on September 11, 1777 — he aims not just to depict a historic clash, but to illuminate the quiet turmoil, courage and humanity of those who lived through it.

12 Paintings for 12 Hours

The series of paintings was conceived in collaboration with Martinez’s friend and longtime patron, Mark Slouf, a history enthusiast, America250 PA Commission member and builder. Slouf lives on land near Trimble’s Ford, a key crossing used by 9,000 British forces during the battle.

According to Slouf, the idea came to him in the middle of the night years ago: “I woke up thinking, ‘Adrian should be painting the Brandywine battle, hour by hour.’” He immediately called Martinez, who agreed.

Martinez has completed six of the 12 planned canvases. Each painting captures a specific moment and mood, beginning before dawn, when the fog-covered British troops initiated their flanking maneuver while crossing the West Brandywine Creek, and ending at dusk, as the exhausted armies collapsed into darkness.

But this is not a traditional battlefield chronicle filled with saber-wielding generals and cannon blasts. “These are about the people — their emotions, their daily lives, what they lost, what they saw,” Martinez said.

Martinez’s attention to historical and emotional detail is exacting. He spends years researching his subjects, visiting battle sites, reading letters, maps and journals, and consulting with reenactors. This dedication isn’t about perfectionism for its own sake. For Martinez, fidelity to historical detail is a gateway to larger truths. “You can’t understand the meaning without the texture,” he explained. “It’s not just about who shot whom. It’s about what was at stake — land, home, culture.” Martinez’s layered sensibility infuses each canvas.

Trimble’s Ford Musings

The “Baking Day” painting evokes childhood memories from Mark Slouf. “As a young boy, I fished in the Brandywine Creek at Trimble’s Ford. I was intrigued by the fact that General Howe learned from Kennett loyalists about two undefended fords. He devised a strategy to split the British Army to trick General Washington and outflank us. Starting at dawn in Kennett, half the Redcoats marched in full sight on Baltimore Pike directly to Chadds Ford,” he said.

Historians tell us the other half of the troops “secretly” marched north to cross Trimble’s Ford, and then east to cross Jefferis Ford before coming up to Osborne’s Hill at Birmingham. On that incredibly hot, humid day, the troops wore heavy wool clothes and boots, carrying 60-pound packs and 13-pound muskets.

Slouf continued, “After crossing the waist-deep fords, did the cool water offer temporary relief or just a heavier burden on their march to an unknown fate? And then, after their 11-hour march, with loaded flintlocks and bayonets attached, they charged into battle. The kid in me always wonders how they must have felt.”

Personal Stories

Martinez’s Quaker background deeply informs the tone of the series. “The Revolution was a disaster for Quakers,” he said. “They were pacifists. Their farms were torn apart by both sides. I wanted to show that without making it sentimental.”

Indeed, Martinez is less interested in glorifying combat than in exploring how individuals — Quakers, Hessians, enslaved people, women — weathered its chaos. The stories of the officer combatants are well known. Martinez wants his viewers to put themselves in the position of other voluntary and involuntary participants and witnesses.

Ultimately, Martinez’s Brandywine series is about more than illustrating past battles. It’s about reviving memory and emotions through art — bringing the war into kitchens, into expressions, into the silent corners of a smoke-filled dusk. “When people see these paintings,” Martinez said, “I want them to feel something — curiosity, empathy, recognition. I want them to step into that moment.”

Public Exhibitions

Martinez and Slouf envision a public exhibition in 2026 and 2027, coinciding with America’s 250th anniversary and the Battle of Brandywine’s own semiquincentennial. They hope to find a host site with deep ties to the region’s artistic legacy in the Brandywine Valley. Slouf said, “Adrian’s work brings something contemporary and deeply human to this history.”

For civic leaders seeking to engage their communities in America250, Martinez’s work offers a model: history not as artifact, but as living memory that persists today — felt, shared and made visible once again.

Kim Andrews is an A250 Friends Outreach Officer of the Community Foundation and nonprofit consultant. She wrote this article to raise awareness of Chester County’s role in our nation’s fight for freedom, building engagement for 2026, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. To get involved, contact: America 250 Friends, Chester County Community Foundation. 610-696- 8211; A250Friends.org.

Image Captions

Image 1: “Lafayette at the Battle of the Brandywine” depicts a young man putting his life at risk for a cause he believes in. He was a trained military officer, fortifying the line by his example, not his words. A man in control, his saber in one hand and pistol in the other. Note in the upper-right corner is a cloud formation, intended as a subtle image of an eagle. But everyone notices it, said Martinez.

Image 2: “Baking Day at Trimble’s Ford” captures the domestic disruption of war. Women’s half-prepared food— bread, eggs, pies—sits abandoned on tables as British cavalry charges through, and Redcoat soldiers gather on the hillside. The battle occurred on a Thursday, interrupting the traditional baking day in Quaker households.

Image 3: “Cornwallis Fog” shows the general emerging from the fog, his face etched with stoic dread. “The morning of September 11 was exceptionally foggy and warm. How did it feel to be Cornwallis?” Martinez said. “Did he know he’d win the battle and lose the war? Did he understand the American mind? That’s in his expression.”