Set up in 1939 by the Ministry of Information and headed by Sir Kenneth Clark, the War Artists Advisory Committee (WAAC) was established to provide an artistic record mainly of the impact of the war at home. After the war over half the resulting collection of 5,570 works were distributed to the Imperial War Museum and the rest to collections around Britain, providing valuable additions to their contemporary art collections. Artists either had full-time or temporary contracts or had artworks acquired. Part 2 here includes the majority of the 100 artists on short-term contracts. Developed in association with Grant Waters, Art Detective Group Leader: South East England, East England and the Midlands.

Artists featured in this Curation: John Armstrong (1893–1973), Edward Baird (1904–1949), James Bateman (1893–1959), Walter Bayes (1869–1955), Frank Ernest Beresford (1881–1967), Oswald Hornby Joseph Birley (1880–1952), David Bomberg (1890–1957), Rodney Joseph Burn (1899–1984), Thomas James Carr (1909–1999), Evan Charlton (1904–1984), and 57 more See all

66 artworks

Storyline Album Showcase

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John Armstrong (1893–1973)

A Farm in Wales 1940
John Armstrong (1893–1973)
Tempera on gesso panel
H 63.6 x W 51 cm
Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

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Image credit: Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums

Edward Baird (1904–1949)

Local Defence Volunteer 1939
Edward Baird (1904–1949)
Oil on canvas
H 91 x W 69.5 cm
Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums

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James Bateman (1893–1959)

Silage c.1940
James Bateman (1893–1959)
Oil on canvas
H 50.9 x W 71.1 cm
Laing Art Gallery

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Battle of Britain: Parachutists from an Enemy Aircraft Brought down in an Apparent Attempt to Bomb Buckingham Palace

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Walter Bayes (1869–1956)

Battle of Britain: Parachutists from an Enemy Aircraft Brought down in an Apparent Attempt to Bomb Buckingham Palace 1942
Walter Bayes (1869–1955)
Oil on canvas
H 119 x W 140.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Frank Beresford (1881–1967)

A Doodlebug in St John's Wood 1944
Frank Ernest Beresford (1881–1967)
Oil on canvas
H 61 x W 50.5 cm
City of Westminster

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Air Marshal Sir Richard Peirse (1892–1970), KCB, DSO, AFC

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Oswald Birley (1880–1952)

Air Marshal Sir Richard Peirse (1892–1970), KCB, DSO, AFC 1940
Oswald Hornby Joseph Birley (1880–1952)
Oil on canvas
H 137.1 x W 88.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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David Bomberg (1890–1957)

Bomb Store 1942
David Bomberg (1890–1957)
Oil on canvas
H 59.6 x W 75 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Dr R. E. Stradling (1891–1952), CB, MD, FRS, Chief Scientific Adviser on Research and Experiments to the Ministry of Home Security

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Rodney Burn (1899–1984)

Dr R. E. Stradling (1891–1952), CB, MD, FRS, Chief Scientific Adviser on Research and Experiments to the Ministry of Home Security 1945
Rodney Joseph Burn (1899–1984)
Oil on canvas
H 91.4 x W 71.1 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Thomas Carr (1909–1999)

Making Coloured Parachutes 1944
Thomas James Carr (1909–1999)
Oil on canvas
H 76.5 x W 63.8 cm
National Museums NI

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Evan Charlton (1904–1984)

A Parachute Factory 1943
Evan Charlton (1904–1984)
Oil on panel
H 51.1 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

William Clause (1887–1946)

A Fire Guard Team, Exeter 1943
William Lionel Clause (1887–1946)
Oil on canvas
H 64.1 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Robert Colquhoun (1914–1962)

Weaving Army Cloth 1945
Robert Colquhoun (1914–1962)
Oil on canvas
H 75.5 x W 101.5 cm
British Council Collection

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Philip Connard (1875–1958)

Balloon Barrage and Shipping 1940
Philip Connard (1875–1958)
Oil on canvas
H 50.8 x W 68.5 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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James Cowie (1886–1956)

Scottish Policeman 1941–1942
James Cowie (1886–1956)
Oil on canvas
H 66 x W 49.5 cm
Glasgow Life Museums

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Raymond Coxon (1896–1997)

Military Training
Raymond James Coxon (1896–1997)
Oil on canvas
H 91.4 x W 71.1 cm
The Hepworth Wakefield

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Camouflage Screens at a Cheshire Factory

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Barry Craig (1902–1951)

Camouflage Screens at a Cheshire Factory 1943
Barry Craig (1902–1951)
Oil on canvas
H 54.6 x W 74.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Sir Patrick Dollan (1885–1963), Lord Provost of Glasgow (1938–1941)

Image credit: Glasgow Life Museums

Hugh Adam Crawford (1898–1982)

Sir Patrick Dollan (1885–1963), Lord Provost of Glasgow (1938–1941) 1941
Hugh Adam Crawford (1898–1982)
Oil on canvas
H 92.1 x W 71.1 cm
Glasgow Life Museums

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Image credit: The National Archives

Terence Cuneo (1907–1996)

Production of Tanks 1939–1946
Terence Tenison Cuneo (1907–1996)
Oil on canvas
H 51.3 x W 61.5 cm
The National Archives

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Robin Darwin (1910–1974)

Camouflaging a New Flight Shed 1941
Robin Darwin (1910–1974)
Oil on canvas
H 63.5 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Anthony Devas (1911–1958)

Pamela McGeorge, BEM, of the Women's Royal Naval Service 1942
Anthony Devas (1911–1958)
Oil on canvas
H 95.5 x W 80 cm
The Hepworth Wakefield

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Air Chief Commandant Dame Katherine Trefusis Forbes (1899–1971)

Image credit: Royal Air Force Museum

Thomas Cantrell Dugdale (1880–1952)

Air Chief Commandant Dame Katherine Trefusis Forbes (1899–1971) 1941
Thomas Cantrell Dugdale (1880–1952)
Oil on canvas
H 84.5 x W 65 cm
Royal Air Force Museum

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Charles Dyson-Smith (1891–1960)

Mourning Widows 1945
Charles Dyson-Smith (1891–1960)
Bronze
Watford Museum

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Ian Eadie (1913–1973)

Air Raid Shelter, Dundee 1940
Ian Eadie (1913–1973)
Oil on canvas
H 47 x W 65 cm
National Museums Scotland

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Image credit: Bradford Museums and Galleries

Vincent Evans (1896–1976)

Repairing the Main Roadway 1942
Vincent Evans (1896–1976)
Oil on canvas
H 71 x W 91.5 cm
Bradford Museums and Galleries

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Hubert Freeth (1912–1986)

NAAFI Counter c.1943
Hubert Andrew Freeth (1912–1986)
Oil on canvas
H 51.1 x W 76.5 cm
Brighton & Hove Museums

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Sandbag Filling, Islington Borough Council

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Ethel Gabain (1883–1950)

Sandbag Filling, Islington Borough Council c.1941
Ethel Léontine Gabain (1883–1950)
Oil on canvas
H 76.2 x W 63.5 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Women's Voluntary Services Clothing Exchange

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Evelyn Gibbs (1905–1991)

Women's Voluntary Services Clothing Exchange 1943
Evelyn Gibbs (1905–1991)
Oil on canvas
H 101.9 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: Tate

Charles Ginner (1878–1952)

Emergency Water Storage Tank 1942
Charles Ginner (1878–1952)
Oil on canvas
H 68.6 x W 50.8 cm
Tate

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Duncan Grant (1885–1978)

St Paul's 1941
Duncan Grant (1885–1978)
Oil on canvas
H 91.6 x W 61.4 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Air Marshal William Sholto Douglas (1893–1969), CB, MC, DFC

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Herbert James Gunn (1893–1964)

Air Marshal William Sholto Douglas (1893–1969), CB, MC, DFC 1940
Herbert James Gunn (1893–1964)
Oil on canvas
H 76.2 x W 63.5 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Norman Hepple (1908–1994)

Glider Borne Landing and the Capture of Bénouville Bridge, Normandy, France, by the 2nd Battalion (52nd) of the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, the First Formed Body of British Troops to Reach Normandy on D-Day, 0016Hrs, 6 June 1944 1945
Norman Hepple (1908–1994)
Oil on canvas
H 100 x W 151 cm
Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry Museum

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Eliot Hodgkin (1905–1987)

The Haberdashers' Hall, 8 May 1945 1945
Eliot Hodgkin (1905–1987)
Tempera on panel
H 29.2 x W 36.8 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Percy Horton (1897–1970)

Blind Workers in a Birmingham Factory c.1942
Percy Frederick Horton (1897–1970)
Oil on canvas
H 60.9 x W 50.8 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Ray Howard-Jones (1903–1996)

Fortified Islands (Building the North Battery, Flatholm, Bristol Channel) 1943
Ray Howard-Jones (1903–1996)
Oil on board
H 40.8 x W 58.4 cm
Aberdeen Art Gallery & Museums

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Air Marshal Sir Harold E. Whittingham (1887–1983), KBE, DGMS

Image credit: Royal Air Force Museum

Francis Jackson (1872–1945)

Air Marshal Sir Harold E. Whittingham (1887–1983), KBE, DGMS 1945
Francis Ernest Jackson (1872–1945)
Oil on canvas
H 60 x W 49.5 cm
Royal Air Force Museum

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Refugees: '... pray ye that your fight be not in the winter...' Matthew XXIV, 20

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Mary Kessell (1914–1977)

Refugees: '... pray ye that your fight be not in the winter...' Matthew XXIV, 20 1945
Mary Kessell (1914–1977)
Oil on canvas
H 50.8 x W 60.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Laura Knight (1877–1970)

A Balloon Site, Coventry 1943
Laura Knight (1877–1970)
Oil on canvas
H 102.5 x W 127 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Wyndham Lewis (1882–1957)

A Canadian War Factory 1943
Wyndham Lewis (1882–1957)
Oil on canvas
H 114.3 x W 85.7 cm
Tate

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

L.S. Lowry (1887–1976)

Going to Work 1943
Laurence Stephen Lowry (1887–1976)
Oil on canvas
H 45.7 x W 60.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Mrs Jean Knox, CBE, Chief Controller and Director, Auxiliary Territorial Service

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Neville Stephen Lytton (1879–1951)

Mrs Jean Knox, CBE, Chief Controller and Director, Auxiliary Territorial Service 1942–1943
Neville Stephen Lytton (1879–1951)
Oil on canvas
H 91.4 x W 71.1 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Frances Macdonald (1914–2002)

The X-Ray Department at the Queen Alexandra Military Hospital 1941
Frances Macdonald (1914–2002)
Oil on canvas
H 40.6 x W 60.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum

Alexander Macpherson (1904–1970)

School Cadets – Examining Sten Gun 1943
Alexander Macpherson (1904–1970)
Graphite & charcoal on paper
H 32.5 x W 41 cm
Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum

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Image credit: Manchester Art Gallery

Robert Medley (1905–1994)

Gate Duty
Robert Medley (1905–1994)
Oil on canvas
H 33 x W 22.9 cm
Manchester Art Gallery

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Paul Methuen (1886–1974)

Invasion Craft Being Built in the West India Docks, 30 May 1944 1944
Paul Ayshford Methuen (1886–1974)
Oil on canvas
H 50.1 x W 75.7 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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The Bombed SS 'Toscalusa' at a Western Port

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Harry Morley (1881–1943)

The Bombed SS 'Toscalusa' at a Western Port 1940
Harry Morley (1881–1943)
Oil on canvas
H 50.8 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: Royal Air Force Museum

Cuthbert Orde (1888–1968)

Bomb Store 1940
Cuthbert Julian Orde (1888–1968)
Oil on canvas
H 71.5 x W 91.5 cm
Royal Air Force Museum

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Charles Pears (1873–1958)

Sinking of the 'Scharnhorst', 26 December 1943 c.1944
Charles Pears (1873–1958)
Oil on canvas
H 101.5 x W 152.5 cm
Royal Museums Greenwich

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Elizabeth Polunin (1878–1950)

Divisional Officer Twyman 1942
Elizabeth Violet Polunin (1878–1950)
Oil on canvas
H 92.7 x W 64.1 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Patricia Preece (1894–1966)

Miss M. Steele 1942
Patricia Preece (1894–1966) or Dorothy Hepworth (1894–1978)
Oil on canvas
H 68.5 x W 50.8 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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William Roberts (1895–1980)

Munitions Factory 1940s
William Patrick Roberts (1895–1980)
Oil on canvas
H 81 x W 122 cm
Salford Museum & Art Gallery

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The Experimental Establishment, Shoeburyness: Firing through Screens

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Kenneth Rowntree (1915–1997)

The Experimental Establishment, Shoeburyness: Firing through Screens 1945
Kenneth Rowntree (1915–1997)
Oil on canvas
H 53.3 x W 68.5 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding (1882–1970), GCB, GCVO, CMG

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Walter Russell (1867–1949)

Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding (1882–1970), GCB, GCVO, CMG 1942
Walter Westley Russell (1867–1949)
Oil on canvas
H 91.4 x W 71.1 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Night Action: Gunboats off Le Tréport, 4 September 1943

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Peter Scott (1909–1989)

Night Action: Gunboats off Le Tréport, 4 September 1943 1943
Peter Markham Scott (1909–1989)
Oil on canvas
H 63.5 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: Glasgow Life Museums

Robert Sivell (1888–1958)

Dehydration of Herrings 1943
Robert Sivell (1888–1958)
Oil on canvas
H 76.2 x W 106.7 cm
Glasgow Life Museums

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Image credit: Royal Air Force Museum

Alan Sorrell (1904–1974)

Eight AM Parade, RAF 1942
Alan Sorrell (1904–1974)
Oil on canvas
H 69.8 x W 85.1 cm
Royal Air Force Museum

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Scene in an Underground Train: Workers Returning from Night Shift

Image credit: Bridgeman Images

Ruskin Spear (1911–1990)

Scene in an Underground Train: Workers Returning from Night Shift 1943
Ruskin Spear (1911–1990)
Oil on panel
H 58.4 x W 71.1 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: Bridgeman Images

Gilbert Spencer (1892–1979)

Grasmere Home Guard 1943
Gilbert Spencer (1892–1979)
Oil on canvas
H 61.5 x W 121.9 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Stanley Spencer (1891–1959)

Shipbuilding on the Clyde: The Furnaces 1946
Stanley Spencer (1891–1959)
Oil on canvas
H 156.2 x W 113.6 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Steven Spurrier (1878–1961)

An Army Discussion Group 1943
Steven Spurrier (1878–1961)
Oil on canvas
H 73.6 x W 91.4 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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War in the Forest: Newfoundland Lumberjacks at Work in Scotland

Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

David Macbeth Sutherland (1883–1973)

War in the Forest: Newfoundland Lumberjacks at Work in Scotland 1940
David Macbeth Sutherland (1883–1973)
Oil on canvas
H 60.9 x W 91.4 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Alfred Thomson (1894–1979)

Miss Gillian Tanner, GM, of London 1941
Alfred Reginald Thomson (1894–1979)
Oil on canvas
H 101.9 x W 76.2 cm
IWM (Imperial War Museums)

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A. R. Middleton Todd (1891–1966)

Sub-Officer Henry E. Shaw, BEM, London Fire Service
Arthur Ralph Middleton Todd (1891–1966)
Oil on canvas
H 35.6 x W 23 cm
Manchester Art Gallery

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Feliks Topolski (1907–1989)

RAF Station – British and Polish Flags c.1940–1945
Feliks Topolski (1907–1989)
Ink & wash on paper
H 25 x W 38 cm
The Ingram Collection of Modern British and Contemporary Art