In the words of the artist’s wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, “As a child who was fascinated by and knowledgeable about Irish history, Shane became interested in submarines when he discovered that the first submarine to be used in a war was designed by an Irish engineer during the American Civil War. He also read a great deal about the 1916 uprising and the German submarines that were sent to aid the Irish rebels, and later on he watched the television series ‘Das Boat’ which was followed by a feature film of the same name about young German submariners who manned submarines during WW2. Shane’s ‘Das Boat’ drawing which was done on acid with gold and silver sharpies on a black background is a regurgitation from the depths of his unconscious of the terrors of ‘depth charges’ and the vast, unknowable, dark and dangerous ocean in which we are all helplessly adrift."