Sunderland Flying Boat in Hangar by John Nash, oil on canvas

John Nash represented this Sunderland flying boat when he was commissioned through the War Artists' Advisory Committee to paint Admiralty subjects in the Second World War, as an Official War Artist.

Working in Plymouth, Bristol and Swansea, Nash represented submarines and ships as well as vessels in dry dock, including this Sunderland under repair. While his peacetime subject-matter included the pastoral British landscape, which he represented in paintings and graphic art, Nash applied a comparable bold, colourful style to his pictures of war machinery. Sunderlands were operated by RAF Coastal Command and played a vital role in protecting Allied shipping from attack by U-boats and the Luftwaffe. From the Air Ministry allocation of works from the War Artists' Advisory Committee, 1947. Original accession number: LD361. On loan from the RAF Air Historical Branch (MOD). Copyright: Crown (expired) / RAF Museum.