Circus Outbound, by Keith Ferris

Keith Ferris masterfully conveys the power of eighteen B-24Ds of the American pioneer 93rd Bomb Group as they climb through 21,000 feet into the light of the early morning sun. On this important day of World War II, March 18, 1943, the B-24Ds, joined by B-17s and other bombers, crossed the East Coast of England en route to their target, the submarine base at Vegesack, Germany. This first mission to Germany for the 93rd Bomb Group proved that daylight bombing could be carried out successfully in the face of German defenses.

"The B-24 was by far the most difficult American heavy bomber to fly," says Ferris. "However, the 93rd Bomb Group excelled at their skills and tactics under the leadership of their commander, Colonel Edward Timberlake. And because the 93rd had been "tasked" to fight over France, North Africa and Italy, they had earned the nickname 'Ted's Traveling Circus.' "

Keith Ferris knows the B-24 inside and out. In 1943, when he was 14 years old, his father commanded the B-24 transition school in Fort Worth, Texas. Young Ferris "had the run of the place," as he puts it, observing countless takeoffs, maneuverings and landings of the school's seventy B-24s.

Today, Ferris is one of aviation's most honored artists. He has had his works exhibited at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the U.S. Air Force Museum in Dayton, Ohio, and many other prestigious locations. His commissions include the 25 foot high by 75 foot wide mural in oil Fortresses Under Fire, which covers the entire back wall of the World War II Gallery of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., and the 20 foot high by 75 foot wide mural depicting the evolution of jet aviation in the NASM's Jet Aviation Gallery. Deeply involved in the history and technology of aerial camouflage schemes, Mr. Ferris is also an inventor who holds five U.S. patents covering deceptive air combat paint schemes.

"The Circus Outbound," says Ferris, "pays tribute to all the brave men who went to war in the B-24. And by showing the vastness of the world we live in, my work also honors the power of the earth. Even man's mightiest acts of warfare cannot diminish the world's capacity to endure."