Wingman (MQ-28 Ghost Bat) Oil on linen 97 x 115 cm 2020
UPDATE:
February 2023, I have a new painting Ghost Shadows to add.
UPDATE:
Late March 2022 the Loyal Wingman drone in Australia will now be called the MQ-28 Ghost Bat. Here's a Boeing Youtube Video and an article in Defence Connect online
WINGMAN: An online exhibition of ten [as of Feb 2023, now 11] paintings - seems like a timely thing to do!
Because-
A few days ago it was announced that the Royal Australian Air Force and Boeing jointly developed Loyal Wingman drone will be produced and assembled at the Aerospace and Defence precinct at Wellcamp airport, near Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. You can read the Queensland Government media statement here.
Wellcamp - Toowoomba
I know the Wellcamp area, but it surely has changed in recent years! Since local company Wagners built the international airport at Wellcamp, Toowoomba has become a major hub, other than for boarding schools, retired country folk and specialist medical help. I grew up on my parent's grain farm outside Dalby, about an hour west of Toowoomba. I went to school in Toowoomba for grades 11 and 12. My maternal grandfather's family had a property at Drayton, not far from Wellcamp. My paternal grandmother grew up on a farm very close to Wellcamp, on the other side of Gowrie Mt. My paternal grandfather's first property, after returning from WW1 [LightHorse], was also close by.
Research
As regular readers know I have been researching airborne drones, surveillance and increasingly autonomous systems for over six years. My current PhD research examines increasing military interest in the electromagnetic spectrum [EMS] as an enabler of technology, a type of fires [weapon], a manoeuvre space [for tactics] and a domain [strategy]. The EMS is also an enabler of civilian technology ie: communication, GPS, Internet, Cloud storage, security systems and so much more. So, my PhD research also examines how shared platforms, interconnectivity, networking and interoperability expose civilian technology to appropriation by state or non-state militarising forces.
Wingman (Ghost Bat) Paintings
Last year I started painting images that included the Loyal Wingman drone, Australia's first manufactured military aircraft in over fifty years. Described as a 'gamechanger' in drone technology, the Loyal Wingman is designed to accompany a crewed fighter jet. The Wingman is swarm-able, weaponise-able and has some autonomous functions eg: flying. Its interchange-able nosecones provide payload dexterity across a mission. It has sophisticated multi-sensor capacity. The drone is also export-able.
In 2019 I wrote a post Pay Attention: The Drones Are Here where I first mention the Loyal Wingman drone.
WINGMAN
THE EXHIBITION
While informed by extensive research, my paintings are speculative and imaginative. They are the result of what I call 'imaginational metaveillance', a kind of flight into imagined cosmic perspectives. Here, with the benefit of distance, what anomalies can we see as we fly around and beyond drones and their support infrastructure? I say we because I invite you to 'fly' too.
The paintings are chronologically displayed, from the first painting, Wingman [above], to my most recent painting Theatre of War: Photons Do Not Care [bottom].
Each painting in WINGMAN has a hyperlinked title. Please click on these to read my previous posts about each painting.
Theatre of War: Photons Do Not Care Oil on linen 92 x 112 cm 2021

WINGMAN: List of Paintings
Wingman April 2020
Theatre of War September 2020
Theatre of War: Terrain Visualisation October 5 2020
Theatre of War: Smart Team October 10 2020
Theatre of War: Pattern Recognition October 27 2020
Verified Landing Site April 2021
Future Memory May 2021
Artificial Trees: Pulling the Future Towards Us June 2021
Theatre of War: Photons Do Not Care July 2021
Ghost Shadows February 2023