National Gallery of Australia | Audio Tour | Grace Cossington Smith

Reinforcements: Troops marching conveys a sense of ritual and occasion. It represents a farewell to the volunteers going off to fight in the First World War. Flags flutter above the buildings and women with their backs to us wave in support. A small child in the foreground breaks free from the crowd and cries in what could be seen as a symbolic loss of innocence. It is an early example of the artist’s work in which vibrant colour, rhythm and pattern are combined with emotive content.