'Above The Foe' was the motto of the 8th Air Force's 78th Fighter Group, based at Duxford, Cambridgeshire. These P-47 Thunderbolts display the 78th's 'loud and proud' black & white checkerboard nose markings in this scene from late spring 1944.
This drawing was commissioned by a regular collector of my drawings and is based on a favorite WWII photograph of his. When asked to "add my take" to wartime photography I always put on my painter's - yes, painter's - cap and look for ways to improve the composition as if the piece were the concept for a future large painting. I do this primarily by seeing the work as fine artists do - with the wonderful and unmatched human eye.
Changes included altering the flat wartime image's tones and values by pushing or pulling the lights and darks, focusing and diffusing contrasts and edges, and as a last touch I almost always change the sky. In this particular case the original photograph displayed a clear and cloudless sky, so I used the opportunity to practice my cloudwork. It meant a lot of extra work for me, but I think the extra effort was worth it ...
Completed 2020
Collection of Ron Freier
'Above The Foe' was the motto of the 8th Air Force's 78th Fighter Group, based at Duxford, Cambridgeshire. These P-47 Thunderbolts display the 78th's 'loud and proud' black & white checkerboard nose markings in this scene from late spring 1944.
This drawing was commissioned by a regular collector of my drawings and is based on a favorite WWII photograph of his. When asked to "add my take" to wartime photography I always put on my painter's - yes, painter's - cap and look for ways to improve the composition as if the piece were the concept for a future large painting. I do this primarily by seeing the work as fine artists do - with the wonderful and unmatched human eye.
Changes included altering the flat wartime image's tones and values by pushing or pulling the lights and darks, focusing and diffusing contrasts and edges, and as a last touch I almost always change the sky. In this particular case the original photograph displayed a clear and cloudless sky, so I used the opportunity to practice my cloudwork. It meant a lot of extra work for me, but I think the extra effort was worth it ...