Updated October 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 32 works by Sydney Carline in our catalogue
In short
To the gallery's eye, Sydney Carline's most famous painting is A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919 (1920). Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk (1919) and Bank Holiday on Hampstead Heath (1915) complete the trio every eye recognises. Of the 32 works by Sydney Carline in our catalog, the gallery presents the 30 most famous below, each original with its year, its museum and what makes it unique.
A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919 is a work by the British artist and teacher Sydney Carline. Created about 1920, the painting captures a specific moment of military aftermath in the Middle East. Carline, born in London, United Kingdom, in 1888, brought a unique perspective to the canvas, shaped by his direct experiences during the First World War.
Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk is a work by Sydney Carline. The artist, born in London, United Kingdom, in 1888, captured this scene in 1919. He was a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps, a man who understood the weight of the cockpit and the suddenness of the wind. His perspective was shaped by the mechanics of flight and the vast, open spaces of the Middle East.
Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids by Sydney William Carline1918 · Imperial War Museum
12
The Dead Sea An Enemy Aeroplane over the Dead Sea, Palestine1920
13
Austrian Prisoners Driven in from the Austrian Lines1918
14
Study for 'The Dead Sea An Enemy Aeroplane over the Dead Sea, Palestine'1920
15
British 'Maurice Farman' Attacked by a German 'Fokker' While Dropping Sacks of Corn on Kut el Amara during the Siege of 19161919
16
Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids1918
17
Aerodrome with Camouflaged Hangars1918
18
Two British Planes Attacking the Turkish Army Corps in the Gorge of the Wadi Baroda, Lebanon, 30 September 19181919
19
The Sea of Galilee Aeroplanes Attacking Turkish Boats1919
20
The Destruction of an Austrian Machine in the Gorge of the Brenta Valley, Italy1918
21
Austrian Dugout beyond Mount Grappa after the Italian Advance of October 19181918
22
British Scouts Leaving Their Aerodrome on Patrol over the Asiago Plateau, Italy1918
23
'Sopwith Camel' Patrol Attacking Austrian Troops Retreating along the Road to Udine, Italy1918
24
Study for 'The Destruction of the Turkish Transport in the Gorge of the Wadi Fara, Palestine'1919
25
A British Pilot in a BE2c Approaching Hit along the Course of the River Euphrates, July 19191919
26
Among the Anti Aircraft Bursts at 20,000 Feet above the Alps A British Air Squadron Crossing the Anglo Austrian Line along the River Piave, Italy1918
27
'Sopwith Camel' Patrol Attacking an Austrian Aerodrome near Sacile, Italy1918
28
Snow in Hampstead1926
29
The Walnut Tree1928
30
The EiderdownManchester Art Gallery
The four subjects that come back most often in these originals, each with its finest example.
The 4 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by Sydney Carline | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Imperial War Museum |
London | 3 | The Destruction of the Turkish Transport in the Gorge of the Wadi Fara, Palestine, Flying over the Desert at Sunset, Mesopotamia, Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids by Sydney William Carline |
 Manchester Art Gallery |
Manchester | 2 | The Hills of Judea, The Eiderdown |
 The Ashmolean Museum of Art And Archaeology |
Oxford | 1 | Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk |
 Royal Air Force Museum |
London | 1 | Italian Front |
Sydney Carline's career on this page runs 14 years, 1915 to 1928: each year appears here with its most famous originals.
Pick a year to see its originals.
More from 1918
#8 Italian Front
#11 Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids by Sydney William Carline
#13 Austrian Prisoners Driven in from the Austrian Lines
#16 Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids
#17 Aerodrome with Camouflaged Hangars
#20 The Destruction of an Austrian Machine in the Gorge of the Brenta Valley, Italy
#21 Austrian Dugout beyond Mount Grappa after the Italian Advance of October 1918
#22 British Scouts Leaving Their Aerodrome on Patrol over the Asiago Plateau, Italy
Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk is a work by Sydney Carline. The artist, born in London, United Kingdom, in 1888, captured this scene in 1919. He was a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps, a man who understood the weight of the cockpit and the suddenness of the wind. His perspective was shaped by the mechanics of flight and the vast, open spaces of the Middle East.
More from 1919
#5 The Hills of Judea
#6 Flying over the Desert at Sunset, Mesopotamia
#9 The Trail of War
#15 British 'Maurice Farman' Attacked by a German 'Fokker' While Dropping Sacks of Corn on Kut el Amara during the Siege of 1916
#18 Two British Planes Attacking the Turkish Army Corps in the Gorge of the Wadi Baroda, Lebanon, 30 September 1918
#19 The Sea of Galilee Aeroplanes Attacking Turkish Boats
#24 Study for 'The Destruction of the Turkish Transport in the Gorge of the Wadi Fara, Palestine'
A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919 is a work by the British artist and teacher Sydney Carline. Created about 1920, the painting captures a specific moment of military aftermath in the Middle East. Carline, born in London, United Kingdom, in 1888, brought a unique perspective to the canvas, shaped by his direct experiences during the First World War.
More from 1920
A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919 (1920). Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk (1919) and Bank Holiday on Hampstead Heath (1915) come next.
32 years old: A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919 dates from 1920, and Sydney Carline was born in 1888.
A Destroyed Turkish Aerodrome at Rayak, Lebanon, 1919, Over the Hills of Kurdistan Flying above Kirkuk, Bank Holiday on Hampstead Heath, The Destruction of the Turkish Transport in the Gorge of the Wadi Fara, Palestine, The Hills of Judea, Flying over the Desert at Sunset, Mesopotamia, Italian Front, Italian Front, The Trail of War and Mostar, Herzegovina. The ranking above gives each one's year and museum.
Our catalog holds 32 works by Sydney Carline, dated from 1915 to 1928.
Mostly in Imperial War Museum (London), Manchester Art Gallery (Manchester) and The Ashmolean Museum of Art And Archaeology (Oxford). The museum table above lists them all.
In 1918: 12 of the 30 works on this page were made then, Italian Front among them.
On this page, the earliest is Bank Holiday on Hampstead Heath (1915) and the latest The Walnut Tree (1928).
Landscape (4), Airplane (2) and Mountains (2), across the 30 works on this page.
Oil, for 2 of the 30 works on this page.
The Destruction of the Turkish Transport in the Gorge of the Wadi Fara, Palestine, Flying over the Desert at Sunset, Mesopotamia and Italians Leaving Padua on Account of the Raids by Sydney William Carline: the Imperial War Museum, London holds 3 of the works on this page.
In the annals of British art history, few figures possess a biography as visceral and daring as Sydney William Carline. A man who lived at the intersection of profound artistic sensitivity and the harrowing realities of modern warfare, Carline did not merely observe history; he flew through its most turbulent moments. Born in London on August 14, 1888, into a family where creativity was as much a part of the atmosphere as the London fog, his early life was steeped in the traditions of visual storytelling. As the son of the celebrated landscape painter George Francis Carline, Sydney was raised in an environment that nurtured a keen eye for detail and a deep respect for the natural world. This familial connection to art extended to his siblings, creating a lineage of creators that included the notable Richard Carline and even connections to the legendary Stanley Spencer, weaving him into the very fabric of early 20th-century British modernism.
Carline’s artistic journey was one of continuous refinement and expansion. His formal training at the prestigious Slade School of Art between 1907 and 1910 provided him with a rigorous technical foundation, yet it was his time in Paris that truly ignited his creative spirit. Immersed in the intellectual ferment of the French capital, Carline absorbed the revolutionary techniques of masters such as Cézanne and Picasso. This exposure to the burgeoning Impressionist and early Cubist movements infused his work with a modern sensibility, teaching him how to manipulate light, form, and perspective to capture not just the appearance of a subject, but its very essence. Before the world descended into chaos, Carline was establishing himself as a skilled art teacher, dedicated to passing on these sophisticated European techniques to a new generation of British artists.
The outbreak of World War I acted as a violent pivot in Carline’s life, transforming him from a contemplative educator into a participant in the most dangerous theater of war. Initially serving as a dispatch rider for the British Army, his destiny took an unexpected turn in 1916 when he transitioned to the cockpit of a Sopwith Camel fighter plane within the Royal Flying Corps. This period marked the birth of his most significant contribution to art: the documentation of aerial combat. Carline possessed a unique vantage point that few artists could claim, witnessing firsthand the terrifying beauty and mechanical brutality of dogfines over the Somme and the Italian Front.
His paintings from this era are far more than mere historical records; they are emotive, kinetic experiences. In works such as "The Destruction of an Austrian Machine in the Gorge of the Brenta Valley," Carline captures the frantic energy and lethal precision of early aviation. His brushwork often mirrors the chaos of the sky, blending elements of Romanticism—in its depiction of the sublime and terrifying power of nature and machine—with a stark, unflinching Realism. He had the rare ability to convey the dizzying heights, the suddenness of an attack, and the heavy psychological weight of war, all while maintaining the structural integrity learned during his years in Paris.
Though his life was tragically short, ending in 1929, Carline’s impact on the trajectory of British war art remains profound. He helped pioneer a specific genre of aviation art that moved away from static, heroic portraiture toward a more dynamic, atmospheric representation of conflict. His ability to find beauty within the wreckage of war—to see the "trail of war" as both a tragedy and a powerful visual phenomenon—allowed him to bridge the gap between traditional landscape painting and the modern, fragmented reality of the 20th century.
The significance of his work can be summarized through several key contributions:
Today, the works of Sydney William Carline continue to resonate with viewers who find themselves moved by his ability to capture the ephemeral nature of a moment caught in flight. He remains a vital figure for anyone seeking to understand how the trauma of the Great War reshaped the eyes of the artists who lived through it.
