Marking 50 years since Queen Elizabeth II opened the RAF Museum in London on 15 November 1972, our new art exhibition celebrates the occasion with 50 key works from the collection by important 20th century British and European artists. ‘To the Stars’ takes its name from the RAF motto, ‘Per Ardua Ad Astra’, a translation of which is ‘Through Adversity to the Stars’. Ranging from representations that chart early civil aviation at Hendon and the Royal Flying Corps, to the Second World War and the jet and space age of the Cold War, the exhibition explores artists’ perspectives on the operations and cultures of the RAF as well as on the broader themes of flight, ambition, myth, conflict, and technology. The exhibition features works acquired since the Museum’s early days of art collecting. The Museum’s Founding Director Dr John Tanner, who, earlier in his career, had lectured in ‘Extra Mural’ (or lifelong learning) Art History at Nottingham University, began to develop the art collection through his relationships with London art dealers and artists and their estates. In the early days of collecting, he and the curatorial team affordably purchased uniquely important works, some of which would now pose a challenge to acquire without fundraising assistance. Highlights include C.R.W. Nevinson’s seminal ‘Taube Pursued by Commander Samson’ (1915), a body of Richard Carline’s Official War Artist works from the First World War, including ‘Baghdad and River Tigris from 10000 ft’ (1919), Cyril Power’s Grosvenor School linocut ‘Air Raid’ (c.1935), and Laura Knight’s large drawings for her Official War Artist painting ‘Take Off’ (1943). Complementing our own works on display are those from the nationally important collection of Official War Art of the Second World War, on long-term loan to the Museum from the RAF Air Historical Branch (Ministry of Defence). Originally belonging to the Air Ministry, the collection comprises 400 works that were commissioned and purchased for the nation by the Government-led Official War Artists scheme under art historian Sir Kenneth Clark, Chairman of the War Artists’ Advisory Committee.