As the story of the painting's subject emerges, Imogen removes herself from DeFoe and enters the orbit of Edward and his obsession with the horrific news being broadcast from Europe. The inevitable collision of art and reality is surprising and prophetic. Drawing together the mysteries of identity and self-determination and the ominous aura of Europe in the late 1930s, The Museum Guard is also an examination of the drive to step out of the everyday and into action -- and of that drive's often tragic consequences. Like The Bird Artist, this is a work that will linger in the memory long after its startling conclusion.