On Board the Paper Doll
The time was 1944 and the place was Polebrook, England. From there the mighty American B-17 Flying Fortresses took off on their 14 hour bombing runs destined for targets within the Germany of the Third Reich. Seventeen times the Paperdoll made that perilous journey through flak and the Luftwaffe and each time returned, however, not always unscathed.
The crew chose the aircraft's nosename, The Paperdoll, after one of their members broke down following an early mission and was found cutting paperdolls out of mission maps on the way home. The story of these seventeen missions, commanded by Lt. William Arnot Day, age 25, and crewed by 9 airman from the American heartland inspired these 20 paintings.
The paintings: Each paintng is on board using oilstick and spray enamel. Each piece is 32 X 48 inches and all were completed in 2008 by Kirk Arnot Day, the son of the pilot.
