Attack
40" x 30"
Oil on Canvas
Vietnam – April, 1967
Near Cung Son Special Forces "A" Team Camp
Sergeant First Class Clifford H. Shelley and Hired Irregulars
The 5th
Special Forces, better known as "The Green Berets," is an elite corps.
The
officers and men are superbly trained, dedicated and heroic.
Portrayed is Sergeant
Shelley leading a contingent of Irregulars
on an attack and destroy
mission.
The troops are grimacing as they all yell
in an attempt to convince the
Viet Cong that a much larger force is attacking.
The whole situation
seemed slightly unreal and hazy to the artist
because of a leg wound he
had suffered
minutes earlier
when
the Jeep
in which he was riding
was thrown by an explosion.
This memory may have contributed to
the
impressionistic style he gave to the painting.
