Training 

Sue Coe created this stark artwork to address the sinister subject of training for war. Dominating the image are armed soldiers, their figures looming over kneeling, vulnerable individuals, the modern day equivalent of a medieval battle scene. The act of kneeling carries heavy symbolic weight, appearing across cultures and religions. Think of Renaissance paintings, for instance, where kneeling often signified devotion and submission before God or royalty. Here, that sacred gesture has been perverted. The act becomes an emblem of forced compliance, a loss of agency in the face of violence and coercion. This inversion speaks to the unsettling psychological impact of war training, where the lines between right and wrong blur and empathy erodes. Coe’s use of such loaded symbols engages us on a deep, subconscious level. These symbols, ingrained in our collective memory, evoke emotional responses tied to power, submission, and fear. The cyclical nature of violence persists, as this imagery continues to resurface, evolving, and taking on new meanings in different historical contexts.