The clear references to the horrors of war do not deny themselves in this work. With expressive vehemence the painting grabs the viewer’s attention. In the midst of explosions and the threatening sea, all hope seems lost for the despairing figure, who writhes in pain on the way to certain death.

This early work shows that already six years before the CoBrA group had been officially founded, Heerup found his artistic rhythm and an idiom of his own, which he later so successfully pursued.