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In this work, Kennington captures the moment soldiers scramble ‘over the top’, out of a trench into no-man’s land to attack the enemy trench line.  Many were met almost immediately by a hail of gunfire, causing great loss of life.  Kennington’s works have a particular human interest. Having been a soldier, he was able to draw the images with knowledge and accuracy.

Showing soldiers in training and at the Front, one journalist described these prints as capturing ‘the spirit of our new, young army’.  Kennington was probably chosen for this subject as he had himself enlisted with the 13th (Kensington) Battalion London Regiment and fought on the Western Front, France, 1914-1915.  He was wounded and discharged as unfit in 1915.  These prints do not attempt to depict the horror and tragedy of war, as in most of his war art, Kennington instead champions the common soldier.

Kennington was born in Chelsea, London, the son of a well-known portrait artist. He studied at St Paul’s Art School, the Lambeth School of Art and the City and Guilds School. He was appointed an official war artist from 1917-1919 and again in 1940-1943, painting portraits of sailors and airmen.