This intimate painting of a solitary soldier on a pristine Australian costal headline continues 'The Silence' series of paintings for Watson, which has become one of the artist's most recognisable and adored.
The young man wears the uniform of the Light Horse regiment. He is sitting with a letter in hand in a dramatically simple composition. The solider's expression is ambiguous, allowing the viewer to interpret the nature of the news delivered in the letter.
The finely rendered details in the face are evidence of the artist's skill. From the shadows on the models face from his eyelashes, to the shine on the boots and the holster, this is a painting of exceptional quality and confidently stands as one of the artist's finest, small scale works.
