Good evening all,
I am seeking specialist assistance regarding a WWII oil portrait which I believe may depict Wing Commander (later Air Chief Marshal Sir) Lewis Macdonald “Bob” Hodges RAF.
The painting is signed and dated “1944, Bhopal, India” and is attributed to the Italian POW artist Raffaele Collina (1899–1968), who appears to have been interned in India during the war and is documented as producing portraits and murals while in captivity.
I have attached comparison images and summarised the current evidence below.
AUTHENTICATION / IDENTIFICATION
ARTIST
• Signature and date appear consistent with “R. Collina”, 1944
• Collina documented as an Italian POW in India (Camp 24 / Bhopal area references)
• Contemporary accounts suggest he undertook portrait commissions during internment
• Bonhams previously sold a work attributed to the same artist (2013)
DATE & LOCATION
• Painting dated 1944, Bhopal, India
• Hodges documented serving in India during the later war period
• Collina confirmed active within POW camps in India during this timeframe
UNIFORM & RANK
• RAF pilot brevet accurately depicted
• Sitter shown wearing Wing Commander rank insignia
• Hodges held Acting Wing Commander rank during 1944
• Uniform style appears broadly consistent with RAF wartime portraiture in the India / South-East Asia theatre
FACIAL COMPARISON OBSERVATIONS
The attached comparison images appear to show:
• Similar narrow tapering jawline
• Straight heavy-set eyebrows
• Long straight nose
• Thin upper lip / fuller lower lip
• Similar eye spacing and orbital structure
• Comparable ear position and forehead shape
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
• Hodges was a highly decorated RAF special duties pilot
• Served with No. 161 Squadron (SOE-related operations)
• Later commanded No. 357 Squadron in South-East Asia
• His wartime profile makes a commissioned or commemorative portrait at least historically plausible
CURRENT STATUS
Attribution remains provisional and I am not presenting the identification as definitive fact.
I would be very grateful for any informed opinion regarding:
1. Possible sitter identification
2. Uniform / rank accuracy
3. Artist attribution
4. Historical plausibility of Hodges being portrayed in India during 1944
Any guidance, archival references, or pointers toward relevant RAF / POW / India theatre sources would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
Richard Rowsell
I am seeking specialist assistance regarding a WWII oil portrait which I believe may depict Wing Commander (later Air Chief Marshal Sir) Lewis Macdonald “Bob” Hodges RAF.
The painting is signed and dated “1944, Bhopal, India” and is attributed to the Italian POW artist Raffaele Collina (1899–1968), who appears to have been interned in India during the war and is documented as producing portraits and murals while in captivity.
I have attached comparison images and summarised the current evidence below.
AUTHENTICATION / IDENTIFICATION
ARTIST
• Signature and date appear consistent with “R. Collina”, 1944
• Collina documented as an Italian POW in India (Camp 24 / Bhopal area references)
• Contemporary accounts suggest he undertook portrait commissions during internment
• Bonhams previously sold a work attributed to the same artist (2013)
DATE & LOCATION
• Painting dated 1944, Bhopal, India
• Hodges documented serving in India during the later war period
• Collina confirmed active within POW camps in India during this timeframe
UNIFORM & RANK
• RAF pilot brevet accurately depicted
• Sitter shown wearing Wing Commander rank insignia
• Hodges held Acting Wing Commander rank during 1944
• Uniform style appears broadly consistent with RAF wartime portraiture in the India / South-East Asia theatre
FACIAL COMPARISON OBSERVATIONS
The attached comparison images appear to show:
• Similar narrow tapering jawline
• Straight heavy-set eyebrows
• Long straight nose
• Thin upper lip / fuller lower lip
• Similar eye spacing and orbital structure
• Comparable ear position and forehead shape
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
• Hodges was a highly decorated RAF special duties pilot
• Served with No. 161 Squadron (SOE-related operations)
• Later commanded No. 357 Squadron in South-East Asia
• His wartime profile makes a commissioned or commemorative portrait at least historically plausible
CURRENT STATUS
Attribution remains provisional and I am not presenting the identification as definitive fact.
I would be very grateful for any informed opinion regarding:
1. Possible sitter identification
2. Uniform / rank accuracy
3. Artist attribution
4. Historical plausibility of Hodges being portrayed in India during 1944
Any guidance, archival references, or pointers toward relevant RAF / POW / India theatre sources would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
Richard Rowsell
