Study: A Balloon Site, Coventry (VIII) by Dame Laura Knight, graphite and watercolour on paper

This compositional study is one of several preparatory drawings by Dame Laura Knight for a painting commissioned by the War Office to encourage recruitment of women to RAF Balloon Command - 'A Balloon Site: Coventry' (1942, Imperial War Museums).

By the Second World War, Knight was a mature, highly-respected painter and the first fully-elected female Royal Academician since the 18th century. As one of few women to receive Official War Artist commissions, she pursued numerous short-term projects. Following devastating Blitz raids over Coventry, Knight was briefed to encourage ‘the right sort’ of women to enlist as Women’s Auxiliary Air Force balloon operators, and she emphasised the figures’ agility and strength in handling the unwieldy balloon. Bequest of the artist, 1974. Copyright: the artist's estate and Bridgeman Images / RAF Museum.