Japan is home to a unique pair of military paintings that can be viewed as a collective portrait of the women of the time in which they were created. Commissioned by the army during World War II, the two large-scale works depict women doing various jobs. The paintings were created by 20 or so female artists, and show women doing a number of tasks that would have been the preserve of men before the war. A shortage of male workers brought many women out of the home and into fields where they could demonstrate their skills. As we examine the paintings, we explore how the role of women in the society of the time evolved in the larger the story of war.