Project - The Evacuees

Having finished the brewers dray I wanted to leave behind horses for a bit and go back to steam engines. I was researching, looking at photographs, and I found several taken in stations at the start of world war II when children were being evacuated from the big cities. I'm a Londoner originally myself - although unusually both my parents, born in the first few months of the war, stayed in London for the duration. So I do take an interest in London in this period. So I decided that my next painting would tell a story, something about the horrible experience of waiting to get on the train for God alone knew where, which these children had to undergo.

Last time out I used a light blue wash on the board before I started. This time I want to see what the effect will be of using a light red/pink wash.

Here's the photo I took after my first two hour session on Sunday last: -

This is an experimental painting which I'm making very much for my own amusement, and so I didn't sketch out the whole thing before starting, which is something that I'd normally do. Here's the 'star' of the painting if you like - a very apprehensive little schoolboy, waiting in a bustling Paddington Station.

I took this one after a two hour session on Wednesday Evening at the Artists' Group. Though I say it as shouldn't I'm really happy with the second figure, a slightly older boy, trying to affect a little nonchalance, not letting on that he's as scared as the other.

The figures aren't floating in space now, after a three hour session today. I've sketched in some background details, although still not everything. The gloominess of the greys and blacks is appropriate to the subject matter, I think.