View of the Dome, Brighton Pavilion, in use as a hospital for Indian soldiers during the Great War

Executed in watercolour, the artist employs a restrained palette of pinks, blues, and reds to delineate architectural details and uniformed figures. Transparent washes capture the luminous quality of the tall windows, while finer brushwork renders the intricate ceiling arches. The balance between broad colour fields and precise line work conveys both the grandeur of the Pavilion’s interior and the immediacy of a bustling medical ward.

Created during or shortly after the Great War, the painting documents the Pavilion’s temporary conversion for military use. It entered the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it is catalogued as a visual record of the building’s wartime role. The work has been retained as part of the museum’s holdings on British home front history.

During World War I, the Royal Pavilion in Brighton was requisitioned by the British government to accommodate Indian soldiers wounded on the Western Front. The building’s exotic architecture, originally inspired by Indo‑Saracenic design, made it a fitting venue for Indian troops. This watercolour reflects broader patterns of repurposing civilian structures for medical care and illustrates the presence of colonial forces on British soil.