Nicholas
Trudgian. Renowned aviation artist Nicholas Trudgian, aviation art prints of the United States Air
Force including P-51 Mustang and Flying Fortress shown in
aviation art prints available from aviationprints.co.uk a subsidiary of
Cranston Military and Aviation Prints.
Having
graduated from art college, Nicolas Trudgian spent many years as a
professional illustrator before turning to a career in fine art painting.
His crisp style of realism, attention to detail, compositional skills and
bright use of colours, immediately found favour with collectors and demand
for his original work soared on both sides of the Atlantic. Today, more
than a decade after becoming a fine art painter, Nicolas Trudgian is
firmly established within a tiny, elite group of aviation artists whose
works are genuinely collected world-wide. When
he paints an aircraft you can be sure he has researched it in every detail
and when he puts it over a particular airfield, the chances are he has
paid it a recent visit. Even when he paints a sunset over a tropical
island, or mist hanging over a valley in China, most probably he has seen
it with his own eyes.
Nick was born and raised in the
seafaring city of Plymouth, the port from which the Pilgrim Fathers set
sail in 1620, and where Sir Francis Drake played bowls while awaiting the
Spanish Armada. Growing up in a house close to the railway station within
a busy military city, the harbour always teeming with naval vessels and
the skies above resonating with the sounds of naval aircraft, it was not
at all surprising the young Nick became fascinated with trains, boats and
aircraft. It was from his father, himself a talented
artist, that Nick acquired his love of drawing and surrounded by so much
that was inspiring, there was never a shortage of ideas for pictures. His
talent began to show at an early age and although he did well enough at
school, he always spent a disproportionate amount of time drawing. People
talked about him becoming a Naval officer or an architect but in 1975
Nick's mind was made up. When he told his careers teacher he wanted to go
to art school the man said, 'Now come on, what do you really want to
do?"
After leaving school Nick began a
one-year foundation course at the Plymouth College of Art. Now armed with
an impressive portfolio containing paintings of jet aircraft, trains, even
wildlife, he was immediately accepted at every college he applied to join.
He chose a course at the Falmouth College of Art in Cornwall specialising
in technical illustration and paintings of machines and vehicles for
industry. It was perfect for Nick, and he was to become one of the star
pupils. One of the lecturers commented at the time: "Every college
needs someone with a talent like Nick to raise the standards sky high; he
carried all the other students along with him, and created an effect which
will last for years to come." Two weeks after leaving art college
Nick blew every penny he had on a trip to South Africa to ride the great
steam trains across the desert, sketching them at every opportunity.
Returning to England, in best traditions of all young
artists, he struggled to make a living. Paintings by an unknown artist
didn't fetch much despite the painstaking effort and time Nick put into
each work, so when the college he had recently left offered him a job as a
lecturer, he jumped at the chance. The money was good and he discovered
that he really enjoyed teaching.
Throughout the 1970s Nick was much
involved with a railway preservation society near Plymouth and it was
through the railway society that he had his first pictures reproduced as
prints. But Nick felt he needed to advance his career and in summer 1985
Nick moved away from Cornwall to join an energetic new design studio in
Wiltshire. Here he painted detailed artwork for many major companies
including Rolls Royce, General Motors, Volvo Trucks, Alfa Romeo and, to
his delight, the aviation and defence industries. He remembers the job as
exciting though stressful, often requiring him to work right through the
night to meet a client's deadline. Here he learned to be disciplined and
fast.Towards the end of the 1980's Nick had the chance to work for the
Military Gallery. This was the break that for years he had been striving
towards and with typical enthusiasm, flung himself into his new role.
After completing a series of aviation posters, including a gigantic
painting to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Royal Air
Force, Nick's first aviation scene to be published as a limited edition
was launched by the Military Gallery in 1991. Despite the fact he was
unknown in the field, it was an immediate success.
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 | Alfa-Strike by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £120.00 |  | Black Cat Rescue by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £55.00 |  | Checkertail Clan by Nicolas Trudgian | 3 editions available from £120.00 |  | Flight Out of Hell by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Last Man Home by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £155.00 |  | Lightning Encounter by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £170.00 |  | Mustangs Over the Mediterranean by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £120.00 |  | Safe Haven by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Twilight Conquest by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Battle for the Islands by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £130.00 |  | Mustang Mayhem by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £200.00 |  | First Strike on Berlin by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £155.00 |  | Gunfight Over Rabaul by Nicolas Trudgian | 3 editions available from £160.00 |  | Return to Rattlesden by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £130.00 |  | The Black Sheep by Nicolas Trudgian. | 7 editions available from £150.00 |  | End Game by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £130.00 |  | D-Day Armada by Nicolas Trudgian. | 5 editions available from £120.00 |  | Operation Tidal Wave by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £130.00 |  | Ruhr Valley Invaders by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £95.00 |  | Tokyo Bound by Nicolas Trudgian. (FLY) | 3 editions available from £1.50 |  | Pacific Glory by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £130.00 |  | Heaven Can Wait by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Thunderbolts and Lightnings by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £140.00 |  | Flying Tiger by Nicolas Trudgian. | 8 editions available from £37.80 |  | P-51 Mustang by Nicolas Trudgian. | 16 editions available from £37.80 |  | B-24 Liberator by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £35.28 |  | B-17 Flying Fortress by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £37.80 |  | Superfortress by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £35.28 |  | Mustangs Over the Eagles Nest by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £150.00 |  | A Welcome at the Inn by Nicolas Trudgian. | 4 editions available from £225.00 |  | Scramble for the Marianas by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £325.00 |  | Tiger Fire by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £370.00 |  | Dawn Chorus by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) | £380.00 |  | Thundering Home by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) | £335.00 |  | Hot Pursuit by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) | £480.00 |  | Teamwork by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £95.00 |  | V.E. Day - Heading Home by Nicolas Trudgian. | £95.00 |  | Eagles of the Eighth by Nicolas Trudgian. | £42.00 |  | Eagle Attack by Nicolas Trudgian | 2 editions available from £55.00 |  | Warm Winters Welcome by Nicolas Trudgian. | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Ace of Diamonds by Nicolas Trudgian | 2 editions available from £130.00 |  | Rocket Attack by Nicolas Trudgian. | 3 editions available from £75.00 |  | Raising Havoc in the Ardennes by Nicolas Trudgian. (FLY) | 4 editions available from £1.50 |  | Messerschmitt Country by Nicolas Trudgian (FLY) | 4 editions available from £1.50 |
| Return to Rattlesden by Nicholas Trudgian
The painting shows a battle damaged B-17G of the 447th on final
approach to Rattlesden, returning from a strike against road and rail
communications in northern Germany in February, 1945. A P-51 pilot from
359th Fighter Group, having escorted the bomber all the way home, sees his
charge safely back to base. With their crews, the 447th Bomb Group B-17
Fortresses arrived at Rattlesden in late 1943, the East Anglian base from
which the group flew all its missions until the end of the war. Entering
combat on December 24, the 447th targeted submarine pens, naval
installations, ports and missile sites, airfields and marshalling yards in
France, Belgium and Germany in preparation for the Normandy invasion.
In the thick of the bomber offensive, the 447th took part in the Big
Week raids, supported the D-Day Landings, aided the breakthrough at St Lo,
pounded enemy positions during the airborne invasion of Holland, and
dropped supplies to the Free French forces fighting behind enemy lines.
During the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944- January 1945, the group
attacked marshalling yards, railroad bridges and communications centres in
the combat zone, later resuming their offensive against targets deep
inside Germany. When the war ended the 447th had flown over 257 individual
missions, with one of their aircrew, Robert Femoyer, being awarded the
Medal of Honour. Theirs was typical of the action packed campaigns flown
by the American Eight Air Force bomb groups in Europe during WWII.
Ace of Diamonds by Nicholas Trudgian From the day they began their
aerial campaign against Nazi Germany to the cessation of hostilities in
1945, the USAAF bomber crews plied their hazardous trade in broad
daylight. This tactic may have enabled better sighting of targets, and
possibly less danger of mid-air collisions, but the grievous penalty of
flying daylight missions over enemy territory was the ever presence of
enemy fighters. Though heavily armed, the heavy bombers of the American
Eighth Air Force were no match against the fast, highly manoeuvrable
Me109s, Fw190s and, late in the war, Me 262 jet fighters which the
Luftwaffe sent up to intercept them. Without fighter escort they were
sitting ducks, and inevitably paid a heavy price. Among others, one
fighter group earned particular respect, gratitude, and praise from bomber
crews for their escort tactics. The 356th FG stuck rigidly to the
principle of tight bomber escort duty, their presence in tight formation
with the bombers often being sufficient to deter enemy attack. Repeatedly
passing up the opportunity to increase individual scores, the leadership
determined it more important to bring the bombers home than claim another
enemy fighter victory. As the air war progressed this philosophy brought
about an unbreakable bond between heavy bomber crews and escort fighter
pilots, and among those held in the highest esteem were the pilots of the
356th. Nicolas Trudgian pays tribute to the escort fighter pilots of the
USAAF Eighth Air Force, and in particular to those who flew with the
356th, with his new action packed aerial panorama Ace of Diamonds. Top
scoring ace Donald J Strait, flying his P-51 D Mustang Jersey Jerk,
together with pilots of the 356th Fighter Group, are seen in action
against Luftwaffe Me 109s while escorting B-17 bombers returning from a
raid on German installations during the late winter of 1944. His fine
rendition brings home the devastating speed with which these attacks were
fought: One minute all is orderly as the mighty bombers thunder their way
homeward; the next minute enemy fighters are upon them and all hell breaks
loose. |
| Warm Winters Welcome by Nicholas Trudgian
The P-51 Mustangs of the 357th Fighter Group race over a typical
English village as they head for Leiston and home. The return to
base after combat over enemy territory was always exhilarating, and pilots
often hedgehopped over towns and villages on their way home. As the autumn of 1944 turned to winter, the USAAF Eight Air Force were
penetrating ever deeper into enemy territory, attacking distant targets in
central and south east Germany. Large formations of seven or eight
hundred bombers, escorted by as many fighters, darkened the skies over the
Reich. Central to the massive daylight raids was the long range
capabilities of the P-51 Mustang, the most versatile fighter of the war.
Despite incessant pounding from the air, the Luftwaffe were putting up
determined resistance, particularly in the south, often sending up several
hundred fighters to meet the challenge. Huge aerial battles were
fought between the opposing groups of fighters, and though the Allied
pilots usually gained the upper hand in these encounters, the air fighting
was prolonged and furious. Typical of those encounters, on a single mission in November the Allied
estimate of Luftwaffe sorties flown against them exceeded 750, but often
the German fighters were handicapped by poor direction from the ground,
hampering their effectiveness - on the 27th, several Gruppen were vectored
directly towards the P-51s of the 357th and 353rd Groups believing them to
be incoming bombers. They paid the price, the Leiston based pilots
of the 357th bagging 30 enemy fighters before they knew what hit them.
Successful as they were, the long range escort missions flown by the
P-51s were both hazardous and gruelling. The weather, particularly
in winter, was often appalling, and even an experienced pilot could become
disorientated after hectic combat, and lost in the far reaches of the
Reich. The return to base in England after combat over distant enemy territory
was always exhilarating, and the pilots often hedgehopped gleefully over
towns and villages on their way home after crossing the English coast.
Eagles of the Eighth by Nicholas Trudgian Major Jim Goodson taxies his 4th (The Eagles) Fighter Group P-51 D
Mustang at Debden following a mission to supply air support over the
Normandy beaches soon after D-Day, June 1944. Having previously flown
Spitfires and Hurricanes with the RAF, Spitfires with 133 Eagle Squadron,
and P-47 Thunderbolts with the Fourth fighter group, Jim Goodson became
one of the USAAF's top fighter pilots of WWII.D-Day Armada by Nicolas Trudgian
There was never a greater
concentration of air power deployed in a n active theatre of war as over
the English Channel in May and June 1944. As D-Day approached, the
USAAF's Ninth Air Force had assembled over 3500 aircraft and, dispatching
up to 1000 aircraft a day, they were pounding enemy positions all the way
from Pas de Calais to the coast of Normandy. 6 June 1944, arguably
the most decisive single day in modern military history, saw the sky
filled with waves of troop carrying aircraft towing gliders, dropping over
20,000 highly trained men in support of the massed sea-borne landings on
the beaches below. Grabbing all the airspace they could find, the
combat wings of the Ninth Air Force were creating havoc among the German
ground forces as they scrambled to get troops and armour to the
battlefront.
Duxford Eagles by Nicholas Trudgian A group of P-51 mustangs take off for a sortie.
Duxford: A name synonymous with military aviation. Built during
the First World War, that most famous of airfields later became home to
some of the most distinguished fighter squadrons of World War Two.
That expanse of rolling Cambridgeshire countryside has harkened to the
sounds of piston-engined aircraft for over 80 years. Base to the
legendary Douglas Bader Fighter Wing during the Battle of Britain, it
became home to countless thousand Americans of the 8th Air Force in
1942. Today it appropriately houses the magnificent American
Air Museum, and hosts the many summer air shows where crowds thrill to the
sight and sound of the glorious veteran warbirds that fought in the
hostile skies above Europe in World War II.
The 78th Fighter Group, briefly stationed at Goxhill, flew their P-47
Thunderbolts into Duxford in April 1943, the Group remaining operational
there until the end of the war. Initially flying high altitude
sweeps over France and Holland, the aggressive pilots spoiling for a scrap
constantly challenged the Luftwaffe to come up and fight. As the
great daylight raids built up, the 78th took up escort duties and, now
equipped with the P-51 Mustang fitted with auxiliary tanks, flew and
fought all the way to the target and back. By the end of the war the 78th Fighter Group was credited with 688
enemy aircraft destroyed, 474 in the air, and another 406 destroyed on the
ground during low-level strafing missions. Charles London of the
78th became the 8th Air Force's first fighter Ace of the war and a 78th
pilot, Quince Brown, was the first to down an Me262 jet in August 1944
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| A limited edition featuring
the P-51 Mustangs of the 4th Fighter Group in action over Gablingen
airfield, Bavaria, 1945.
Of all the 4th Fighter Group's many famous actions in World War II, it
saved one of the most remarkable till last. In its final major mission of
the war on 16 April, 1945, in two blistering airfield attacks, its pilots
destroyed no fewer than 105 enemy aircraft. While "A" Group attacked airfields in the region of Prague,
"B" Group consisting of the 334th Squadron led by Major 'Red
Dog' Norley, devastated the Luftwaffe base at Gablingen in 40 minutes of
continuous strafing. That same day other 8th Air Force fighter groups
attacked Luftwaffe airfields all over Germany, claiming a total of 752
aircraft destroyed. The Luftwaffe never recovered from this terrible and
devastating blow.
Nicolas Trudgian's new limited edition re-lives that momentous aerial
assault in graphic detail with a superbly realistic view of the
snow-covered Gablingen airfield in Bavaria. As 'Red Dog' Norley's P-51D
screams across the field at hangar height with his squadron's Mustangs
fanned out behind him, the 4th Fighter Group pilots jink through the
intense groundfire wreaking havoc on the ground. In the foreground a couple of brave Fw190 pilots make a gallant attempt
to get airborne while an assortment of Luftwaffe aircraft - Me262s,
Me410s, Ju88s, Stukas and Fw190s - come under fire. Ground personnel take
cover as best they can. In the distance hangars and aircraft are on fire
and a fuel dump has exploded.
The painting is packed with action and all the accurate detail for
which this talented artist has become so well known. In addition to the
334th's P-51s, there are over twenty aircraft visible on the ground, and
the remains of others having been destroyed in earlier attacks. With each print in the edition individually signed by World War veteran
P-51 Aces, Mustang Mayhem is surely one of the finest collector pieces
issued and available today.
Mustangs Over the Mediterranean by Nicholas Trudgian
P-51 Mustangs of the 31st Fighter Group pass low over an Italian
fishing village heading out on another combat patrol.
Last Man Home by Nicholas Trudgian Pilots and crews of 375th Fighter Group at
Leiston, Suffolk, anxiously
await the return of the last man from today's mission
Checkertail Clan by Nicholas Trudgian There was no mistaking the 325th Fighter Group. Their reputation
preceded them, the brightly coloured checkerboard tails of their P-51
Mustangs signaling a calling card most Luftwaffe pilots hated to see. By May
1944, based in Italy, the 325th were escorting the heavy bombing missions
deep into Rumania, France, Germany and Austria. Escorting B-24s to bomb
the airfield at Markersdorf in Austria, August 1944, the 325th tangled
with a group of Fw190 fighters. The ensuing dogfight spiraled down below
the mountain peaks as Herky Green led the Checkertails in a high-speed,
low-level chase through a spectacular Austrian mountain pass. Herky nails
one Fw190. Behind him his P-51 pilots take out two Fw190s off his
starboard wing. When all is done this day the 325th will be credited with
15 enemy fighters destroyed. Signed by Robert Barkey, Arthur Fiedler, Herky Green.
. |
| FIRST STRIKE ON BERLIN by Nicholas Trudgian"No bomb shall fall on German soil"
was the brash claim made by Reichmarshal Hermann Göring before the start
of World War II. A couple of years into the war the Luftwaffe's boastful commander
up-dated his arrogant statement with "If enemy bombers ever appear
over Berlin you can call me Meier". On March 6, 1944 they called him
Meier. The German supremo would have kept his head well down on that day,
for it was the day the Eighth Air Force arrived overhead the German
capital.
Berlin - Big B to the bomber crews - was protected by the cream of the
Luftwaffe, and by thousands of anti-aircraft batteries strategically
positioned around the city. To approach Berlin from the air was the bomber
pilots nightmare. Of the 700 bombers that set out that historic day, 69
would not return; but the B-17 gunners and their escort fighters gave as
good as they got. On that first successful daylight raid, and on the many missions to
Berlin that followed, losses were high, but the daytime bomber strikes
against the heart of Nazi Germany had an incalculable effect on enemy
morale, to say nothing of the disruption to the German war machine. They
did more: they signalled to Göring and his Führer that their fate, and
that of the Third Reich, was sealed; and the 140,000 USAAF aircrew who
flew the torturous attacks to Berlin earned themselves a special place
among those who have endeavoured against tyranny.
Nicolas Trudgian's new painting relives the fearsome aerial combat on
March 6, 1944, as B-17 Flying Fortresses are attacked en-route for Berlin.
Screaming in head-on, Fw190s of II./JG I based at Stormede, charge into
the bomber stream. With throttles wide open, 56th Fighter Group P-47
Thunderbolts come hurtling down to intercept. B-17 gunners are working
overtime; the air is full of cordite, smoke, jagged pieces of flying metal
and hot lead. We are in the midst of one of the fiercest aerial battles of
the war. In the foreground Lucky Lee survives the first onslaught, but her luck
won't hold today. Our Girl Sal to the right of the picture will fare
better - she will be the only 100th BG aircraft to make it back to her
home base from this epic raid. Limited edition prints are signed by bomber and fighter pilots who flew
the Berlin raids more than half a century ago. |
| Stormclouds Gather by Nicholas Trudgian
Signed by Günter Seeger, Siegfried Bethke. By mid August 1940, the Battle of Britain had reached its most
crucial stage. The all-powerful Luftwaffe was inflicting huge losses on
RAF Fighter Command, many of its young and inexperienced pilots becoming
easy victims of the battle-hardened German Aces. The contest was
desperate. Air supremacy was vital. Each day, weather permitting, armadas
of German fighters and bombers set forth across the Channel; the great
aerial battles continuing from dawn until dusk. By September , I.?JG2
Richthofen was under command of the brilliant Helmut Wick. Leading the
famous wing, Wick was the top-scoring Luftwaffe Ace in the Battle of
Britain with 56 victories. The print depicts Wick, with Günther Seeger off his starboard wing,
leading Me109s of I./JG2 out on a mission in September 1940. Heinkel 111
bombers of the Kampfgeschwadern are assembling for another raid on
England. A Blenheim of No2 Group has force-landed on the beach, testimony
to Bomber Command's contribution to the historic battle. |
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