Troops in back of truck, Libya

This work captures on canvas the physical and mental exhaustion of troops who have coped with endless marching, dust storms and lack of sleep. The bodies and uniforms piled on top of one another tells much about the weariness of war. The pink and mauve hues adopted by Ivor Hele for his North Africa paintings are sensuous and warm but amid these desert colours some of the human forms appear deathly. Hele's painting explores the notions of sleep and death, as being almost one and the same for men who are past feeling, overcome by extreme fatigue that is beyond imagination.