"Surprise at Asch" - Marc Stewart - P-51 Mustang World War II Aviation Art

Marc Stewart is a native of Atlanta, Georgia, currently residing in Newnan, Georgia. He has always had a love of flying and a love of aircraft (WWII aircraft in particular). As a teenager he earned his private pilots license. He and his friends flew all over the U.S. and Canada in a Cessna 120, and through their ignorance of youth (mixed with a lot of luck) narrowly averted death many times! They would often get two aircraft and "dogfight" each other or put on "airshows" for friends.

In college Marc became involved in sailplane flying and was an active member of the West Georgia College Sport Parachute Team. After college, he joined the U.S. Navy and graduated from Aviation Officers Candidate School in Pensacola. Marc then began flight training in pursuit of a career in Naval Aviation. During his Naval career Marc flew several aircraft including the T-34C, T-2C, US-2B, C-12, C-131 and the TA-4J Skyhawk. In 1995, he retired from the Naval Reserve as a Lieutenant Commander.

In grade school and high school Marc drew or painted aircraft subjects. Throughout college many of his art shows were of an aviation theme. Marc believes his early flying experience influenced his college art projects. His military flying days and aviation maintenance experience further served to enhance his attention to detail in his aviation artwork.

Marc’s aviation art has been juried into numerous exhibits nationwide including the EAA Sport Aviation Art Competition and the National Museum of Naval Aviation’s Aviation Art Competition Exhibition. Marc won “First Place – Military” from Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine in the 2002 International Juried Aerospace Art Exhibition. His work has illustrated articles in numerous publications including Aviation History, World War II, Military History, and Airline Pilot Careers magazine.

Marc has been an Artist member of the American Society of Aviation Artists (ASAA) since 1993 and holds a B.A. in Fine Art. His career as a professional artist spans ten years. From illustrating features in internationally published history magazines to private commissions for clients such as aircraft engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney, Marc continues to expand his horizons in historical and military art.

Marc Stewart Signed & Numbered Limited Edition Print "Surprise at Asch"

In December of 1944, the Germans broke through Allied lines during the Battle of the Bulge. The 352nd Fighter Group was moved to a forward base in Asch, Belgium designated Y-29.

Believing that these forward bases would be vulnerable on New Year's Day, the Germans began hoarding their Luftwaffe units for one final strike known as Operation Bodenplatte. In the early morning hours of January 1, 1945, 900 German fighters and bombers struck at these bases in Western Europe.

Antcipating such a surprise attack, Col. John C. Meyer led 12 P-51 Mustangs of the 352nd Fighter Group into the frigid morning air. The enemy attacked during Col. Meyer's takeoff roll. He pulled up sharply and shot down an FW-190 before his landing gear had completely retracted.

Not scheduled to fly that morning, 352nd FG Ace Capt. Donald S. Bryan witnessed the action. Capt. Bryan had the dubious distinction of being the only pilot whose personal aircraft, Little One III, was destroyed on the ground that day. Lt. Col. Bryan achieved the status of "Ace in a Day", scoring five kills in one mission. Lt. Col. Bryan finished the war with 13.34 confirmed victories.

This 18" by 24" overall size print, 14" by 21" image size, limited to 500, is signed by the artist and co-signed by WWII Ace Lt. Col. Donald S. Bryan.

This print is also available in the following format:

50 Artist Proofs - $125.00

All Limited Edition prints are signed and numbered (S/N) by the artist. Limited Edition prints are restricted to a certain number. For example, if 400 prints are made from an original painting, once they’re gone, that’s it. There is no limit to the number of open edition prints of a particular painting. That’s why Limited Edition prints are more expensive — and more valuable to collectors — than "open" edition. Rare objects are more valuable.

An Artist’s Proof (AP), generally, is the first 5 - 10% of the Limited Edition prints that come off the press. If the Limited Edition is 400 s/n, there would be 20 - 40 APs. This status is noted on the print. Collectors prefer APs because their value increases even more than a Limited Edition as time goes by.

All Limited Edition artwork is subject to availability at time of order. Although seller strives to remain currrent as to inventory, seller reserves the right to cancel a sale if item is no longer available at time of purchase.