George Fullard’s head sculptures stand as a poignant testament to his wartime trauma and radical political roots. Raised in a working-class Sheffield mining family steeped in socialist politics, Fullard’s worldview was forged by class consciousness and shattered by the Second World War. While serving, he narrowly escaped death when his tank exploded during the brutal battle for Monte Cassino – an ordeal that left him with permanent physical scars across his head and shoulder.

Made in 1960, this sculpture bypasses classical proportion in favour of a raw, expressionist approach to modelling.The surface shifts with volatile energy, evoking the visceral memories of bodily destruction, survival, and the terrifying 1940 blitzkrieg he witnessed in his home city. Self-described as an ‘image maker’ rather than a traditional sculptor, Fullard infused his socialist, anti-establishment perspective directly into his art, resisting formal institutional rigidity by welcoming the “entry of the unexpected” into his creative process.

Today, Fullard’s legacy is preserved across major national institutions, with seminal works held in the Tate Collection, the Arts Council Collection, and Leeds City Art Galleries.