A giant hand roaming through the dark streets of London, people and rats try to escape its grasp; representing bubonic plague. Watercolour by R. Cooper.

1 painting : watercolour, with gouache and pencil

Cooper.

Copyright was assigned by the artist to the Wellcome organization

Wellcome Collection 24002i

One of several paintings commissioned by Henry S. Wellcome around 1912 from Richard Cooper, who was then working in Paris. Cooper was educated at Tonbridge and then trained as an artist in Paris before the First World War. In 1914 he joined the British Army and in 1916 was transferred to the Royal Engineers. His obituary in The times says that he worked on camouflage with Solomon J. Solomon RA as well as acting as official war artist for The graphic. After the war he enjoyed a flourishing career as a graphic artist designing posters: he is particularly well known for his advertisements for the London Underground