Ravilious (1903–1943) was born in Eastbourne and studied at the Royal College of Art. A prolific artist and designer, his work ranges from watercolours (for which he is best known), to murals, engravings and designs for Wedgwood ceramics. To all his work he brought a combination of wry innocence and sophistication. In 1940 he was commissioned by the War Artists Advisory Committee and attached to the Royal Marines; he produced an outstanding body of work from then until his death three years later in air-sea rescue mission off the coast of Iceland. Due to wartime security the exact location his works were rarely given. Rainbow with Camouflaged Shipshows a destroyer, decorated with dazzle camouflage, at anchor in a naval harbour; writing to a friend he describes completing the work back home in Essex ‘with the help of an Ironbridge sky and some sea out of my head’.

My Yard, British Council 2009

This work was presented to the Collection by the War Artists' Advisory Committee.