by
Robert Taylor
34" by 24"
The fifth and final edition in Robert Taylor's acclaimed
Band of Brothers Portfolio, commemorating the great Air Commands of WWII
THE ACES EDITION
450 Signed and Numbered - $320
signed
by THREE US Navy Hellcat Aces
Commander WILLIS
E. HARDY USN
Commander
HAMILTON McWHORTER USN
Commander
ALEX VRACIU USN
THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC EDITION
300 Signed and Numbered - $425
25 Artist Proofs with 9 signatures - Sold Out
Issued with a matching numbered pilot signed copy of
Robert Taylor’s ‘Pacific Pirate’
companion print and the main print are signed
by an additional FIVE Hellcat pilots, a total of NINE signatures.
Commander JOHN ‘TED’ CROSBY USN
Colonel ARCHIE G DONAHUE USMC
Lt. Commander FRED ‘BUCK’ DUNGAN USN
Lt. Commander JAMES E DUFFY USN
Captain JOHN R STRANE USN
Commander ED ‘WENDY’ WENDORF USN
THE PORTFOLIO PUBLISHERS PROOFS
75 Signed and Numbered - $650
With all the components of ‘War in the Pacific Edition’
The main print is also signed by Jim Swett MOH and Bruce Porter
This edition only is issued with the collector drawing
‘DAUNTLESS OVER THE YORKTOWN’
signed by a leading Dauntless pilot.
A total of TWELVE signatures.
Colonel BRUCE PORTER USMC
Colonel JAMES E. SWETT USMC MOH
Captain STANLEY ‘SWEDE’ VEJTASA USN ( Companion Print)
Truk, the small atoll in the South Pacific, was the
major anchorage for the Japanese
Fleet. Comprising a magnificent harbor and four
heavily defended airfields, it was
thought impregnable by the US forces as they fought
their way up through the
Pacific. But on 16-17 February 1944 a violent two-day
aerial assault by
carrierborne aircraft of Task Force 58 exploded
the myth. In just two days the US
Navy flyers sunk over 200,000 tons of Japanese naval
shipping and destroyed an
estimated 275 enemy aircraft, totally eliminating
all effectiveness of the Japanese
base. Light as the US Navy losses were only 25 aircraft
failed to return the battle
for Truk was ferocious. The ground installations,
ships, and airfield batteries put up
intense antiaircraft fire against the attacking
American aircraft, while Zeros did their
best to repel the onslaught. The air above the atoll
became a maelstrom of flak,
tracer, flying lead and shrapnel, while below huge
explosions rocked the ground as
ammo and fuel dumps were hit, fires raged, and the
acrid smoke of battle pervaded
the entire area. In this important new painting,
his first featuring the F6F Hellcat,
Robert Taylor brings to life the scenario that was
crucial to Admiral Spruance’s
forceful drive through the Central Pacific. The
once feared Japanese base at Truk is
being reduced to a statistic of war. Hellcats of
VF6 hurtle across the lagoon at
masthead height with guns blazing, creating havoc
as they tear into the enemy
positions below. Seen in the foreground is the F6F-3
of Lt. Alex Vracui,
subsequently to become one of the Navy’s top guns.
This exhilarating new work
dramatically conveys the awesome conditions endured
day after day by the pilots of
the US Navy and Marine Corps in the Pacific. With
prints signed by a host of US
Navy Aces, including the first F6F Hellcat Ace of
World War II, Robert has
created a limited edition print that will take pride
of place in many discerning print
collections.