The Green Fields

Oil on Linen Board
60 x 45 cm

I painted this scene as a tribute to my uncle, RAAF Flight Sergeant Jack William Woods who died in England as a result of a training accident, whilst piloting a Wellington, when an engine failed whilst landing. He was 23 years old.

After arriving in England for the training Jack penned a letter to his parents which included the following sentiments.

Usually my imagination paints too rosy a picture of something I am looking forward to, but England was, if anything even more beautiful then I expected. The beautiful green of the meadows, the soft artistic shape of the trees, the thatched roofs of neat little farm houses, the grand homes of country gentlemen, the sparkling streams – the hedges instead of fences to divide the fields – they all lend a little to the whole beauty of the country.

It gave me a strange feeling as I first passed through this country – I felt proud of England and that this land was something worth fighting for.