No. 29 Bus - Eric Ravilious

A surreal 1934 watercolour by Eric Ravilious, depicting a disused double-decker bus resting in a quiet rural field.

Eric Ravilious produced this watercolour in 1934, capturing a surreal juxtaposition between modern transport and the rural English countryside. The work depicts a double-decker bus, stripped of its chassis and wheels, resting incongruously in a field. The vehicle is supported by wooden barrels, a characteristic touch of the artist's interest in the mundane and the mechanical.

Ravilious was a master of the watercolour medium, employing a dry-brush technique that allowed for precise, linear detail. His approach to light and shadow creates a sense of stillness, almost as if the scene is frozen in time. The composition draws the eye toward the bus, which stands as a strange, architectural object against the backdrop of trees and a pale, cloud-streaked sky. The muted palette of browns, greys, and pale blues reflects the artist's preference for a controlled, atmospheric colour scheme.

This piece demonstrates the artist's ability to find the unusual within the ordinary. By placing a piece of urban machinery in a pastoral setting, Ravilious invites the viewer to consider the intersection of human industry and the natural world. The work is devoid of human figures, which adds to the quiet, dreamlike quality of the image. It is a fine example of his mid-1930s output, where he moved away from traditional landscape painting toward a more idiosyncratic, graphic style. The attention to texture, particularly in the rendering of the wooden bus frame and the surrounding fence, shows his background as an illustrator and wood engraver. This print captures the unique perspective of an artist who viewed the English landscape with both affection and a sense of detachment.