Australian War Memorial Logo
Search

Donate Today

  • Collection Open Information Close Information
    • Official Histories & Unit Diaries
    • Understanding the Collection
    • Research at the Memorial
    • Donating to the Collection
    • National Collection Loans
    • Projects
  • People
  • Visit
  • Commemorate Open Information Close Information
    • Last Post Ceremony
    • Honour Rolls
    • Anzac Day
    • Remembrance Day
    • Customs & Ceremony
    • Speeches
  • Learn Open Information Close Information
    • Schools & Teachers
    • Memorial Articles
    • Encyclopedia
    • Understanding Military Structure
    • Podcasts
    • Glossary
    • Magazine
  • Get Involved Open Information Close Information
    • Donations & Bequests
    • Corporate Partnership
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Volunteer at the Memorial
    • Friends of the Memorial
    • eMemorial Newsletter
    • Grants, Scholarships & Residencies
    • Research Papers
  • Shop Open Information Close Information
    • Memorial Shop
    • Images, film and sound
    • Lone Pine Seedlings

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Memorial Articles
  3. blog
  4. New Art Acquisition by Eric Thake

Main navigation

  • Our People
  • Our Work
  • Our Organisation
  • Media Centre
  • Memorial Articles
    • Australians and Peacekeeping
    • Australians at war
    • Gulf War 1990-1991
    • Journal of the Australian War Memorial
    • Korean War 1950 - 1953
    • NAIDOC Week
    • RAAF Centenary
    • Victory in the Pacific Day
  • Speeches

New Art Acquisition by Eric Thake

Cherie Prosser

27 January 2015

Eric Thake, Self-portrait in a broken shaving mirror

One of only two self-portraits by Eric Thake produced during his Official War Artist commission, 1944-45.

 

eric thicke

Eric Thake (1904-1982) was a Modernist painter with an interest in Surrealism, a style that developed in the early 1920s, best known for its contradictory and illogical scenes, expressing unconscious ideas and concepts. His contemporary approach to art made him an unlikely appointment as an Official War Artist to cover RAAF operations from 1944 to 1945. Thake’s biographer identified that he ‘had previously shown little interest in painting figures, and had even less interest in aircraft.’ [1]

Despite this, as a war artist attached to Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in Australia and then in Morotai , Penfoei and Koepang in the Netherlands East Indies ,Thake was able to consolidate his  artistic style. His adept handling of his materials enabled him to build up a series of paint layers which reflected the complexity of the subject matter provided by the war. The gouache medium suited Thake’s direct, methodical and decisive approach to the selection of his subjects which mainly derived from his immediate surroundings. 

Self-portrait in a broken shaving mirror (1945) in which Thake’s own face is reflected as a fractured and distorted image in a broken mirror nailed to a tree, provides a psychological insight into the artists’ experience. The fragmentation of the portrait introduces a watchful wariness of what might be behind him which was an ever present fear during the context of war. The yellowness of his skin is due to the Atebrin tablets which were taken to prevent malaria. The portrait reflected in the broken mirror is a powerful, honest and raw portrayal of the artist.

The natural flora and fauna on Noemfoor Island included green grasshoppers, millipedes and the pink flowered passion vine which ran wild and provide a suitable analogy to the experience of war. Thake was so deeply moved by the landscape he encountered that he included reference to it in this self-portrait and in his correspondence home. Later that year the minutia of insect life he saw in Netherlands East Indies began to assume in his paintings the forms of wrecked and abandoned aeroplanes, as in Liberator’s face (ART26970) and Wrecked Lodestar (1945) (ART26790). In his use of anthropomorphism, Thake introduced some uncertainty about the division between life and death. The wrecked airplanes seemingly come to life, with the inclusion of eyes and wide gaping proboscis and wings.

Thake is now recognised as one of Australia’s most notable Modernist artists and is currently represented in the Australian War Memorial’s exhibition ‘Reality in Flames: Modern Australian Art and the Second World War’ which will be on display at the Memorial from July 2016.

 

[1] Peter Pinson, ‘Eric Thake: A surrealist at war’, Art Monthly Australia, Issue no.274, October 2014, p.50.

 

Collection Item C173886

Accession Number: ART26790

Wrecked loadstar 1945, pencil and gouache on paper

Author

Cherie Prosser

Last updated: 30 March 2021

  • Back to Articles
1 The Donations and bequests

Donations & Bequests

Your generous donation will be used to ensure the memory of our Defence Forces and what they have done for us, and what they continue to do for our freedom remains – today and into the future.

Find out more
2 Visit Transcribe.awm.gov.au

Transcribe

Help preserve Australia's history by transcribing records from the National Collection. Enhance accessibility and discoverability for all Australians.

Find out more
The placesofpride

Places of Pride

Places of Pride, the National Register of War Memorials, is a new initiative designed to record the locations and photographs of every publicly accessible memorial across Australia.

Find out more
Visit the Australian War Memorial

Visit the Australian War Memorial

The Australian War Memorial is open for visitors as we work to expand our galleries. Entry is free and tickets are not required.

Find out more
Canberra Highlands in Grayscale

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF
TRADITIONAL CUSTODIANS

The Australian War Memorial acknowledges the traditional custodians of country throughout Australia. We recognise their continuing connection to land, sea and waters. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
Location map of The Australian War Memorial
The Australian War Memorial building

The Australian War Memorial

Fairbairn Avenue
Campbell ACT 2612
Australia
View on Google Maps (opens in new window)
Google Map data ©2025 Google
Australian War Memorial Logo
  • Go to AWM Facebook
  • Go to AWM Trip Advisor
  • Go to AWM Instagram
  • Go to AWM Youtube

Footer

  • About
  • Contact
  • Venue Hire
  • Media
  • WM Magazine
  • Donate Today
  • VG Portal

The Australian War Memorial

Fairbairn Avenue

Campbell ACT 2612

Australia

 

Opening Hours

10 am to 4 pm daily (except Christmas Day)

 

In preparation for the daily Last Post Ceremony,

galleries are progressively closed from 3:40 pm.

 

Public entrance via Fairbairn Avenue, Campbell ACT 2612

Sign up to our newsletter

Subscribe

Legal

  • Copyright
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • Freedom of information

Copyright 2025 Australian War Memorial, Canberra. All rights reserved