London sleeps: an art student in the blitz
This display has now closed
To mark the 70th anniversary of the Blitz, the Museum of London is displaying London Sleeps - a painting and accompanying sketches by Rose Ellenby.
The poignant painting reflects Rose’s time spent in a Hackney air raid shelter at the height of the 1941 Blitz. Rose kept boredom at bay by sketching her companions while they slept and later, turned her drawings into a large oil painting.
Aptly called London Sleeps, the painting won her the Central School’s Queen’s prize. After the war, Rose pursued a successful career in illustration, but never sold her acclaimed painting.
Following Rose’s death in 2007, the Museum of London was given the painting and shelter sketches. This is the first time they have been displayed since being acquired in 2008.
Rose’s work is a beautiful reminder of Londoner’s enduring spirit during the Second World War, as well as the dangers they often faced.
Related link
BBC: Christmas 1940
In many ways, Christmas 1940 was the first war-time Christmas of World War Two. Celebrating during heavy rationing and restrictions - whilst surviving heavy bombing and coping with the threat of invasion - was a battle in itself.
In order to avoid the bombs, many families spent some of the festive period in air-raid shelters and other places of refuge. See more information about this and clips taken from the BBC TV archive on the BBC website (external link).
