Assembling a Hawker Hurricane

Elsie Dalton Hewland 1901 - 1979

Summary

A factory floor scene depicting male and female workers building Hawker Hurricane warplanes during World War II. Partially assembled planes without wings are lined up in rows across the floor. More planes, nearer completion, are just visible in the next room at the top of the picture. In the left foreground stands a woman in black dungerees and a red top with a brush and paint pots in her hands. Next to her is another woman dressed in white overalls, working on the fuselage. In the centre is a red stepladder, inscribed 'Hurricane Inspection' in white. Two figures are working in the cockpit, with a third figure underneath the plane. Two more figures in white work on the engine. This is one of a series of paintings on the theme of aircraft construction painted while Hewland was an official war artist in the Second World War. The R.A.F. were very concerned about the accurate depiction of their planes and it demanded a special kind of talent to paint such technical subjects. This work shows men and women working together on an assembly line in a way inconceivable before the war.

Display Label

Assembling a Hawker Hurricane Elsie D. Hewland born 1901 Oil on canvas The War Artists Advisory Committee commissioned Hewland to paint aeroplane subjects. Hawker Hurricanes and Spitfires were the two planes which defended the country during the Battle of Britain. Presented by H M Government War Artists Advisory Committee 1947.402