Shared Experience: Art and War

ATS at Work

Rodrigo Moynihan CBE RA
ATS at Work
oil on canvas
55.8 x 76.2cm
IWM ART LD 3630

Moynihan was concerned for the individual pressed into unfamiliar service during the war. The juxtaposition of the bland colours of uniform, camouflage and machinery contrasts with the volunteer’s own innocent features. Moynihan’s careful attention to the figure, and in particular to her painting arm, emphasises the care she is taking in her own work; an approach that seems at odds with the military exercises in the background.