Worsley was a prisoner-of-war at the naval prison camp Marlag ‘O’ (at Westertimke, near Bremen) and secretly made many paintings and drawings of his fellow inmates, including Godfrey Place (BHC2954). This shows the officers’ room and conveys the air of boredom and confinement as the men try to find ways to kill time: sleeping, reading, smoking, listening to music. Compositionally, the picture draws on the traditional form of the conversation-piece, echoing earlier works such as Hogarth’s ‘Lord George Graham in his cabin’ (BHC2720).

Presented by the War Artists Advisory Committee, 1946.