Catalogue 2012 Art Prize - Gallipoli Memorial Club

 Art
Gallipoli
Prize
2012
Gallipoli Memorial Club Museum Fund Inc
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2
Art
Gallipoli
Prize
2012
Our Creed
We Believe...
That within the community there exists an obligation
for all to preserve the special qualities of loyalty,
respect, love of country, courage and comradeship
which were personified by the heroes of the Gallipoli
Campaign and bequeathed to all humanity as a
foundation of perpetual peace and universal freedom.
Acknowledgements
The Gallipoli Memorial Club wishes to acknowledge the wonderful
efforts so tirelessly given by the following people in contributing
towards another successful year of the Gallipoli Art Prize.
JUDGES
John McDonald
Jane Watters
Barry Pearce
Craig Hickey
PHOTOGRAPHY
Siobhan Ford
Special report (back page)
Doug Conway, AAP Senior Correspondent
SPONSOR
Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs provided valuable
financial assistance towards the publishing of this
and the Canakkale Art Prize catalogues.
For further information, please log onto www.gallipoli.com.au
The Australian Government
Catalogue supported by the Australian Government Department of Veterans’ Affairs
Art
Gallipoli
Prize 2012
Foreword by John McDonald
Each year since its inception in 2005, the Gallipoli Art Prize has attracted a growing number of entries and a higher
percentage of works by professional artists. This is not to say professional artists are given special consideration over
inspired amateurs, but it is an indication that the prize is being taken seriously as an art exhibition, not solely as a
celebration of the ANZAC spirit.
Nevertheless, if there is one feature that distinguishes this event from other Australian art competitions, it is precisely
that underlying spirit. By taking as its theme the creed of the Gallipoli Memorial Club, with its values of “loyalty,
respect, love of country, courage and comradeship”, the prize stands for something greater than mere self-interest.
As a judge one cannot fail to be touched by the number of entries by artists whose relatives fought for their country,
either in the First World War or another campaign. The Prize has given these artists a reason to reflect on the sacrifices
and hardships shared by Australian and also Turkish soldiers. This is not the same as choosing a famous face to paint
for the Archibald, or a landscape for the Wynne. There are moral questions raised by a show that invites artists and
audiences to consider what it means to put one’s life on the line in defence of an ideal. It asks us to understand the
love of one’s country, and the differences between patriotism and nationalism.
Most of all, it shows war as a terrible experience that breaks down social barriers and customs, bringing people
together in adversity. From troubled times comes a new sense of shared identity and purpose. If this were not the
case, war would be too painful and pointless.
This is one of the reasons the Prize features few works that show scenes of combat or violence. This is the aspect
of war we all know - glamourised and made into a cliché by generations of Hollywood films. It is so much harder,
so redolent of greater thought and maturity, to look for the positive qualities that have been born from these human
conflagrations.
The judges have awarded the 2012 Prize to Geoff Harvey, for Trench interment, a strikingly original work that presents
the trenches as as “an archaeological time capsule”. The rusty relics of months spent in these muddy hollows, where
so many would lose their lives, creates a vivid sense of the Great War passing into the fog of time. These objects and
traces of the soldiers’ daily existence suggest we must continue to work to keep their legacy alive.
From a strong field the judges have also highly commended Leo Robba’s Garden of Remembrance 2012, Bill Nix’s
The Memorial, and Peter Gardiner’s They Wore Feathers (Uncle Jim). In distinctive ways each of these works makes
a strong statement about war, death and remembrance. From Gardner’s blackened and battle-scarred soldier to
Nix’s small-town memorial, with its poignant list of the fallen; to Robba’s elaborate garden scene, we move from the
brutality of war to the renewal of life in times of peace. There is nothing like the work of art as a means of preserving
the memory of those who were lost along the way.
John McDonald
(on behalf of the judges)
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Contributing artists
Aek Phakiti
Alan Jones
Alison Chiam
Amber Martin
Benjamin Holgate
Beryl Wood
Bill Nix highly commended
Craig Handley
Craig Waddell
David Curno
Fleur Macdonald
Geoff Harvey Winner
Glen Preece
Greg Cliffe
Joanna Braithwaite
John Bartley
John Colet School
Judy Paradice
Judy Uehlein Nelson
Julianne Ross Allcorn
Kathleen Walker
Kerrie Lester
Lee Porter
Leo Robba highly commended
Margaret Hadfield
Mary Hunt
Max Berry
Mervyn Appleton
Neil Laredo
Pamela Godsall-Smith
Paul Ryan
Penny Harkness
Peter Gardiner highly commended
Peter Smeeth
Peter Smith
Robyn Sweaney
Russell Fuller
Samuel Kirby
Sema Kaynak
Sharyn Jones
Sherwin Peniel Smith
Tannya Harricks
Thomas Lowe
The reflective soldier
Todd #1
Between 2 worlds: Man and dog in landscape.
In his blood
Everyman
Love, hope and the sweet smell of endurance
The memorial
Cenotaph
Wipe away your tears
Am island, am sea, am father, farm, and friend
Portrait of a lost still llife
Trench interment
Young soldier with water bottle
Box seat into the breech
Silent partner
Sunset
Faces of Gallipoli
Poppies
The ephemeral poppy
Remembering the AE1 & AE2
The cable
Lest we forget
Two brothers
Garden of remembrance 2012
Stepping into the undiminished legacy of 1915
“Afghanistan Dreaming Freedom” Revisits the Spirit of Gallipoli
Daybreak
The stretcher bearers
A letter home
As we passed by
I was young when I left
Offering
They wore feathers (Uncle Jim)
Humanity amidst the carnage (Gallipoli Truce 24th May 1915)
Remember me cobber
Last light (ubi sunt)
Cpl of the Light Horse – Baluchi (The Spirit is Still Alive)
Beds and burnt wood
Images of conflict
Special bond
The dawn service-reflections
The forever dogs
Coo-ee
3
AEK PHAKITI
The Reflective Soldier
Oil on canvas
100 cm x 100 cm
This painting is dedicated to all the Australian and New Zealand heroes who have sacrificed their lives for perpetual
peace and universal freedom. Their courage, respect and love and loyalty of country are very much appreciated
by Australian and New Zealand people. This painting is cubist style, inspired by the work of Pablo Picasso. I was
particularly thinking of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith (1897-1935) when I painted this picture. He was a true Australian
hero who in World War I, fought at Gallipoli and flew with Britain’s Royal Flying Corps. However, this painting is
entitled “The Reflective Soldier” because this hero can be anyone we know or think of in particular. I tried to imagine
what could go in our heroes’ minds during their war duties. Hence, in this painting, many emotional expressions are
simultaneously portrayed: braved, strategic, committed, determined, caring, yet cautious, mindful, uncertain and
anguished. The colours of the Australian flag as the background reflect the love and pride of the country – the reason
why they are out there. I hope that this painting will help us recognise how we have become who we are now and how
fortunate we are to have these heroes to protect our countries and regions for perpetual peace and universal freedom.
4
Alan Jones
Todd #1
Oil and Acrylic on Linen
102cm x 97cm
My work explores notions of identity.
My Grandfather passed away when I was 6 years old. For years after my two older brothers (Todd and Darren) and I
spent a lot of time at Grandma’s house. We would play in the back yard, riding our bikes and billycarts up and down
the gravel driveway, chase the goats and feed the budgies. One of our clearest memories of that time was being
fascinated by the uniform Grandad wore as he returned home after serving in the Second World War. I remember his
green hat was pulled up on one side.
Todd #1 features my brother Todd. Through this work I aim to communicate to the viewer the special bond that is
brotherhood. Over the years Todd and I have loved and loathed each other in almost equal measure. Through good
times and bad we have always maintained a fierce loyalty and grudging respect that is unique to brotherhood. We
share precious memories of our childhood.
As a young man my Grandfather and many other ANZACs fought for this country’s freedom. Because of that me and
my brothers were able to enjoy the innocence of youth in the safety of Grandma’s backyard. The only battles we have
seen were on the football field or with each other.
5
ALISON CHIAM
Between 2 worlds; Man and dog in landscape
Oil on Board
60cm x 80cmn
My work plays with mixing space, form and perspective.
The figure can be seen as fragmented or unified. I see it as representing the coming together of individuals and
their special qualities to make a unified whole. The individuals at Gallipoli demonstrated loyalty, respect, love of
country, courage and comradeship to create something bigger, and by doing so, left a strong and lasting legacy for all
Australians. For me, the actions of those in the Gallipoli Campaign engender deep pride, respect and gratitude.
I wanted to explore the dilemmas faced by these legends that we see as courageous, spirited and strong. The strength
and dilemma’s of mateship, the stories of men when injured, needing to leave, but wanting to stay, the return of a
soldier and re-assimilation into civil society but shaped by combat and the psychological fracturing of a returned
soldier, but who is perceived as strong, brave and capable.
For me it seemed like being between 2 worlds with points of familiarity and congruency but feeling slightly at odds in
each.
6
AMBER MARTIN
In His Blood
Oil on canvas
150cm x 92cm
My painting titled: “In His Blood” represents the decades of the ANZAC’s unconditional service. This image is of two
soldiers, decades apart but of the same blood line. The ANZAC of the 21st Century; SIG Matthew Thornton is looking
into the mirror checking his kit and deployment uniform for Afghanistan.
In that moment, his image splits - his own in the 21st Century and his Great, Great Cousin, PVT Frederick Currey
(mother’s line) of the 20th Century, who died of his wounds, aged 21, in the ‘Battle of the Somme’.
Two related Australian soldiers with similar facial features sharing the same eyes; that same regimental stare -face
to face, frozen in time, reflected in the mirror. One in remembrance of those who fought and died for the same cause
of freedom long ago and the other reflecting that the war was not the war to end all wars and that he would meet his
fate on foreign soil.
Two soldiers, decades apart, who signed an oath, prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to keep our shores
safe.
The painting is based on a poem by Jeanine Currey called ‘The War To End All Wars, The War To End Terrorism’.
7
BEN HOLGATE
Everyman
Walnut Ink, Watercolour, Pastel
140cm x 40cm
This work takes as its starting point probably the most famous work of art on the subject, George Lambert’s, “Anzac,
The Landing 1915” in the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.
In thinking about Lambert’s work, I have tried to broaden the emotional perspective, encompassing his original intent
to show heroism and determination forging a new national identity, but also showing other more confronting sides to
the ANZAC experience.
The work seeks to show that the landings were carried out by men of every kind. People like you and me; some
of whom behaved heroically and some others maybe not. Some triumphed and survived, some suffered wounds,
indignity and death and some suffered shock and hallucinations. The work reminds us of all the men who landed and
in the foreground figure, acknowledges the first Turkish defenders who were overwhelmed and annihilated.
In using a dip pen and walnut ink, pastels and watercolour, I have sought to reflect the work of those soldier artists
who sought to record their experiences in drawings, using materials they might have brought with them from
Australia.
8
BERYL WOOD
Love, Hope and the Sweet Smell of Endurance
Acrylic and Paper on Canvas
50cm x 76cm
My father-in-law was a young soldier in the 1st World War. Though he rarely spoke of the conditions, he believed that
it was the little things that helped the fighting men endure that terrible time. A few words from home, from his loved
one kept up his spirits and hope for the future and of course the comradeship. I have emphasised the contact with
home in my work. A poem by Isaac Rosenberg reminded me to consider life in the form of Flora, irrespective of its site
or the presence of friend or foe, still endured.
9
BILL NIX
highly commended
The Memorial
Oil/Charcoal on Canvas
100cm x 100cm
Years ago somewhere north along the New England Highway the family stopped for a break. In the shade where
we parked there was a war memorial. As I read down the list of brave young men who had given their lives for their
country I noticed two inscriptions of the same surname and my thoughts passed to the family of this double tragedy.
I imagined Pop and Ma Sweeny’s dream was that their sons would return and at least one boy would take up the
plough. Alas it wasn’t to be. Whether the Sweenys stayed on the farm or moved away, we’ll never know, but what is
certain, is that all the families of those heroes fallen lived in the shadow of grief.
Every name (fictitious as they are) inscribed on this and all memorials share sadness. If it wasn’t for these brave
men and women who made the sacrifices, fallen or returned, it is unclear whether we would be freely travelling the
highways and byways of this great country.
LEST WE FORGET
10
CRAIG Handley
Cenotaph
Oil
40cm x 50cm
When I was at school I played the cornet in the school band. Part of the annual roster involved marching and playing
for Anzac Day. Every year was the same routine; we would start with the local dawn service, and then make our
way into the city to march with the parade. We would do laps, meaning we would do one pass then tear back up the
backstreets to join the parade again. I think we managed to do this four times one year. Whenever I see a Cenotaph,
be it this one which is in North Sydney, or one that I might see while travelling about the place, I always remember
those days with great clarity.
11
CRAIG WADDELL
Wipe Away Your Tears
Oil on Linen
190cm x 140cm
In response to the battle of Gallipoli I wanted to create a work that reflects my current art practice and pays homage
and respect to the many lives that have been lost in battle. ‘Wipe Away Your Tears’ is a painting of remembrance.
Telopea Speciosissima is the flower form I have used in my painting. Telopea is derived from the Greek telopos,
meaning “seen from afar.” Speciosissima is the superlative of the Latin speciosus, meaning “beautiful” or
“handsome.” In this painting, the Telopea Speciosissima thrusts upwards towards the sky, moving in a positive
direction, as did the men of Gallipolis. It appears almost heavenly bound and floats on a light sea of grey, pink and
blues. The word Telopea meaning seen from afar describes the way these young soldiers must have felt in retrospect,
or maybe this is the distant memory, their love ones held from afar. Speciosus meaning ‘beautiful’ or handsome is the
perfect image of these young soldiers before they went off to war. They left to fight for their country, young, beautiful
and free with adventure in their hearts and soul, this is the way we shall remember them like the floating Telopea
Speciosissima thrusting forward and upwards.
12
DAVID J CURNO
Am island, am sea, am father, farm, and friend
Water Colour, Gouche & Ink on Paper
140cm x 110cm
The Gallipoli Memorial Club’s creed for the community, has parallels with the attributes found in international sport,
those of loyalty, respect, love of country, courage and comradeship.
The last line of the club’s creed has inspired the use of sportsmen in the work, ‘Am island, am sea, am father, farm,
and friend’, with the phrase ‘perpetual peace and universal freedom’, because it is without peace and freedom, there
would be no sport to enjoy.
The photograph that this painting is based on, is of the lifting of two men in the heat of battle, two men that
represented their respective nations proudly on the sporting field, Australian, John Eales (AM), Wallaby Rugby World
Cup captain and New Zealand’s equally inspirational All Black Ian Jones (MNZM). This painting is less about the
parallels between war and sport and more about the fact we have the freedom to be able to play and enjoy things in
life, like sport, thanks to the sacrifice of veterans past.
The title , ‘Am island, am sea, am father, farm, and friend’, is the third to last line in Allen Curnow’s poem, ‘Time’.
David J Curno is an Auckland based artist, currently studying the final year of a four year degree, Elam School of Fine
Arts, Auckland University. He lives in the Sir James Wallace residence, ‘Rannoch’, which houses one of the country’s
most extensive private, contemporary art collections. He has a diploma in Graphic Design from NATCOL. His only
child was born in Paddington’s Royal Hospital for Women, when he lived and worked in Sydney for a decade through
the 80’s and 90’s. He spent two years in Melbourne prior to Sydney and has been exhibiting his art throughout New
Zealand since 1995.
13
FLEUR MACDONALD
Portrait of a Lost Still Life
Oil on Canvas
61cm x 76 cm
“Portrait of a Lost Still Life” was my direct response to information found on my Great Uncle Private Walter Bradley
Kay, of the 15th Battalion. A.I.F who was killed in action ‘In the Field’ Pozieres, Somme Sector, France on the 9th
August 1916.
Walter Kay was born in 1890 in Proserpine, Queensland; he was married with no children but elder brother to two
brothers and four sisters including my mother’s mother.
His journey started on board the HMAT A48 Seang Bee which embarked from Brisbane, Queensland on the 2nd
October 1915 and his journey ended with his name placed with 10,884 other names on the walls of The Australian
National Memorial who were killed in France and who have no known grave.
14
GEOFF HARVEY
Winner
Trench Interment
Acrylic, Pastel, Rust on Canvas
95cm x 200cm
My work looks at the relics & artifacts of war to tell the story of Gallipoli.
“Trenched interment” symbolizes the aftermath of this conflict.
Entombed & preserved like an archeological time capsule are the faded & weathered remains that tell the story of the
solders existence below the ground.
Here they lived, eat, slept, fort & often died in those sand bagged fortified trenches.
Surrounded by the hardware of war, the ammunition, digging implements, spanners & their personal belongs are
etched by time & history into the fabric of my canvas.
15
GLEN PREECE
Young soldier with water bottle
Oil on Linen
84cnm x 84cm
My father was a Sergeant Major based in south west Sydney. I spent my early childhood exploring the hundreds of acres of bush
surrounding our village and quite, often my brothers and I would find discarded old things from wars past.
Old canvas bags with brass buckles. Helmets’ with rotted chin straps and sometimes, our prize, deep blue enamel water bottles.
They were covered in dull green blanket with long hardened leather straps.
We would spend long summer days, armed with sticks for guns hiding in an abandoned trench pretending that we were young
soldiers with water bottles.
16
GREG CLIFFE
Box Seat into the Breech
Oil on Canvas
122cm x 91cm
I became interested in Gallipoli and the Western Front through Family research when I discovered that my wife and I
had 2 grandparents, 2 great uncles, 3 uncles and a British second cousin involved in service in the Middle East and
the Western Front during the First World War.
Fortunately only two of these men were killed in action. They were both killed in trench warfare, bombed in trenches
at Fleurbaix/ Fromelles and the Sommes. One of these soldiers served at both Gallipoli and then backed up on the
Western Front in the 5th AIF, 53rd Battalion in 1916 before his death.
So traumatic were the battles that several of the 5 surviving ancestors experienced life-long illnesses and injury, both
physical and psychological. This had profound effects on successive generations, one man’s entire family becoming
wards of the state because he was incapable of caring for them after his wife died.
In “Box Seat into the breech” I have endeavoured to show how at the commencement of hostilities with the Central
Powers, many at home failed to understand the amount of courage, loyalty and sacrifice that would be required of its’
soldiers in the face of a mechanised war of attrition. Only those who fought could truly foresee how the world would
be changed forever by the devastation of these battles.
Greg Cliffe.
Lawrence Edward Cliffe 7/25 Battalion –Aust Veterinary Hospital.
Relatives in the First World War:
John Reed 2nd Division Ammunition .
Walter Cliffe 1st Battery 1st FAB
Herbert Reed, 53rd Battalion AIF. Gallipoli &Fleurbaix/ Fromelles,
Arthur Cliffe 2nd Division Signal Company AE
Sapper. Sidney Reed, 4th Division Train Driver.
17
JOANNA BRAITHWAITE
Silent Partner
Oil on canvas
112cm x 112cm
In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. – Martin Luther King, Jr.
Endeavoring to paint Simpson’s famous donkey is a path well trodden like those the trusty beast carried the wounded
along through Shrapnel Gully at Gallipoli. To consider the enormous, emotional support the quiet, solid donkey was in such dreadful circumstances is also to try
to understand the relationship between a man and an animal. 18
JOHN BARTLEY
Sunset
Acrylic on polyester – Wax varnish
35.5cm x 38.5cm
I have been to Gallipoli in 1982.
There was no-one there.
I walked the battlefield & looked at the beach from the high Turkish positions.
It was an emotion filled day.
Young men fighting for their countries.
I have been to Ataturks Mausoleum in Ankara.
Seen his pyjamas and the many other “western style” things he liked.
He seemed to be a good man who was trying to save what was left of Turkey.
My Grandfather was a Light Horseman who died young.
My father & uncle went to New Guinea in the same regiment.
They loved the Anzac day March and the gathering of mates.
I took my then three old son to the march in a stroller, after the death of them both. Someone
gave him a piece of rosemary to hold and he held that rosemary in quiet reflection for hours.
It was another emotion filled day.
I like my painting.
For reasons I do not quite understand, only that it hits a cord within me that resonates with
loss and sadness.
19
JOHN COLET SCHOOL
Faces of Gallipoli
Water colour, canvas
This year the Year 6 students looked at portraiture and the different servicemen and women who served in WW1and
the hats worn.
They looked at the use of colour and the shapes that can make up a face. Each picture created is inspired from a
photo of a serving soldier, nurse and each tells a story. Each face is set into 9”x5” as the artists who created artworks
on cigar box lids did in 1889.
The students studied these pictures drawing the final piece freehand and then hand colouring as they would have
done in the photos of that era.
As a class they looked at and were inspired by works from 2 Australian artists and the 9x5 Artists
Sydney Nolan’s Gallipoli series
9x5 Exhibition of Impressions 1889
Ben Quilty, current Australian War Artist
20
JUDY PARADICE
Poppies
50cm x 40cm
November is poppy month, the time of the year when by the wearing of a simple emblem, a red poppy, we salute the
memory of those who sacrificed their health, their strength, even their lives, that we might live in a free Country.
John McCrae’s Poem ‘Flanders Fields’ was the inspiration for my painting.
In Flanders Fields
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flander’s Fields.
John McCrae, 1915
21
Judy Uehlein Nelson
The Ephemeral poppy
Acrylic on canvas triptych
213cm x 71cm
“As a garden poppy, burst into red bloom, bends, drooping its head to one side, weighed down by its full seeds and a
sudden spring shower, so Gorgythion’s head fell limp over one shoulder, weighed down by his helmet.”
(extract from Homer’s ‘Iliad’, Book VIII)
Top left panel: The figure of Britannia has been compared to the goddess Minerva in Homer’s Iliad. Britain’s allegorical
figure was shown as a figurehead on the official next of kin plaque, known as the ‘dead man’s penny’, which included
the words, ‘He died for freedom and honour’.
Lower middle panel: Rain, so necessary to sustain life, unfortunately contributed to the physical suffering at the
Western Front. It was the letters and newspapers from home that sustained the belief that the soldiers were there
fighting to protect and preserve a remembered way of life.
Top right panel: The poppy, associated with Remembrance Day, is one of the few plants to grow where earth has been
disturbed, such as the craters on battlefields. The tomb of the Unknown Soldier is the result of a parent losing a son, a
soldier losing a mate, the frightful loss of war.
Three panels, one composition, a representation that shows the fragility and preciousness of life.
22
JULIANNE ROSS ALLCORN
Remembering the AE1 and the AE2
Oil & Pencil/Mixed Media
AE1
A-Australia; E for ‘E’ Class submarine and number 1 as in the first submarine for the Royal Australian Navy
AE2
A-Australia; ‘E’ for E Class submarine and number 2 in the Royal Australian Navy
The drawing in between the paintings of the AE1 and AE2 shows a cross section of the ‘E’ type submarines that
Australia had in WW1.
The AE1 and AE2 are connected in a strange way for me.
The AE1 was the first unit of the Australian Fleet to be lost and the first allied submarine loss of the war on 13
September 1914 off the Duke of York Islands near Rabaul, PNG. All 35 men were lost; this amounted to half the
submarine force.
I was born and spent my early life in Rabaul and the history of this town and region is so intertwined with both world
wars it never stops intriguing me and inspiring me in my artwork.
I first heard about the AE2 in 2010 at Lone Pine Dinner held at the Gallipoli Memorial Club when Elizabeth Brenchley
gave her talk on the book “Stoker’s Men”, which is based on the adventures of the AE2 and the men who served
on her. The AE2 was also assigned with the AE1 to capture the German colonies of New Guinea in 1914. On 31st
December 1914 The AE2 was sent to the Middle East with written orders to penetrate the Dardenelles.
In this artwork I have tried to depict the submarines at full throttle moving toward or away from their intended
destinations.
The Images of the Men
I have only a few photos of the men who were lost on the AE1 but have one photo of all the men assembled. All were
lost at sea and there are still attempts trying to find the last resting place of the AE1.
The AE2 I have all photos of the men who served her. All 32 crew safely exited the craft and were taken prisoners of
war. Stoker sent the AE2 on her last and deepest dive and final resting place.
I have hand coloured these images and placed them under their respective submarine so when you look at the
submarines you have contact with those who were on board.
23
KATHLEEN WALKER
The Cable
Charcoal
61cm x 80cm
Kath Walker painted this picture to demonstrate the techniques of charcoal drawing to her students at the Sunshine Beach Primary
School.
The painting celebrates the receiving of the cable stating that the war was over.
“The students didn’t know what a cable was until I explained that it was similar to an email – Then the penny dropped!!
I told them that the soldiers were happy as the war was over and they would soon be going home to their families in Australia, New
Zealand and Turkey.”
24
KERRIE LESTER
Lest We Forget
Mixed Media – Oil Paint on Canvas – Hand Stitched
77cm x 102cm
The repetition of war badges collected over time serves to exaggerate and therefore bring to our attention the various
faculties of war, whilst the Queens insignia reminds us who we fight in the name of.
The incendiary light forming a halo around the trees reflects on the burnt decay and destruction that followed battle
while their strong roots and branches talk of new life and hopeful beginnings.
Planted in Memoriam, these trees serve as a poignant reminder of so many young lives lost.
Created in the present Lest we forget looks back towards the war, conscious of our legacy of peace.
25
LEE PORTER
Two Brothers
Graphite on Watercolour Paper
69cm x 71cm (Framed behind non reflective glass)
The two brothers Algernon (in Pith Helmet) and Ernest Pilcher were musicians from Capeville, Pentland. Both men
were members of 3rd Field Ambulance, Australian Army Medical Corps during their time at Gallipoli. Ernest died of
wounds 25/06/18 near Bois Sec, Northern France.
The brothers often wrote home and the drawing is based on their letters and photographs provided by Algernon’s
Grandson, Ross Pilcher. Some of the letters were in Morse code as a family member at home could read it. They
have been deciphered and included in the following extract from letters from the Brothers. The image also includes
Algernon holding a Clarinet which he took with him to Gallipoli and Ernie is holding a handmade Violin from a Fry’s
Chocolate Box.
I have tried to keep a resemblance to the faces of the Brothers based on photographs supplied and created the
drawing to look like a happy image of the Brothers as they would not send home pictures of death or war but an
image that reassures their loved ones that they are fine and in good spirits.
Extract from a letter written by Ernie to his brother Leon (Len,) 16/05/15
Dear Leon,
Now to make an attempt to answer yours of March 5th, but I’m afraid there is but little to talk about.
(Translation of code follows.) Soldiering is not the game we thought it was going to be. It’s not all honey. As you
suppose our landing was a frightful undertaking. Mere words cannot describe it.
(I’d better revert once more to the handy scribble. If the censors get hold of this they will probably pen it out.) I won’t
try to describe anything by letter but will tell you all about everything when we get back. But you will hear about the
bravery of our Infantry boys, how they routed the Turks off the surrounding hills like rabbits. I think I told you before
how we landed with the Infantry being of the 3rd Brigade, so got the benefit of a heavy fire. We went ashore in barges
under fire all the way, got out in deep water. I got winged before we hopped it. I flowed through that water like an
aeroplane and didn’t wait to crawl up the beach like some of them did but made a bold bid for cover and got it too. It
was poor cover though and they could reach us from both flanks, but after a time the Turks were ousted off the hills
and we were only troubled with a few snipers. I only regret I saw so little of and did so little in the great undertaking.
The farm boys are still fighting hard.
Extract from a letter written by Ernie to his father Richard.
“I’ve got a jake fiddle now. A great improvement on the original model. Still originating from a chocolate box for
the greater part, but embodying better woods. I take it out some times. It proves a great aid in charming the froggy
females. They take a fancy to the fiddle first and me after. Of course this doesn’t necessarily always follow. Some of
the dears have an ear for music. Well, you can guess what that means. The band won’t play tonight!”
26
LEO ROBBA
highly commended
Garden of Remembrance, 2012
Oil on Canvas
170cm x 116cm
My painting ‘Garden of Remembrance, 2012’ is based on a real garden, which I happened upon in a churchyard on a
recent painting trip.
What interests me about gardens is that, as has often been stated, in many ways they are like paintings: composed
views that reflect time and place, culture and human emotion. They also contain memories that express the past,
and through their connection with nature they express life. Through life, growth and re-growththey also represent our
present and more importantly our future.
Garden culture, like war is deeply embedded in human history and when I think about war, its’ effects and the many
emotional consequences of war I feel gardens offer a bridge to our emotions. Gardens too, symbolise our spiritual
relationship with the world and offer potential for thoughts and feelings such as hope, renewal, remembrance and
respect. As well gardens are very special places that offer us a sense of peace and a chance to reflect and through
gardens, in remembering those who have died, we can celebrate life.
In essence, when I think about war, I think about life and when I think about life, I think about gardens.
27
MARGARET HADFIELD
Stepping into the Undiminished Legacy of 1915
Oil
163cm x 113cm
The Gallipoli landscape is spectacular but holds the blood and spirit of far too many young men. The greatest loss
being Turkey itself (estimate 100,000). My visit to Gallipoli unleashed an interest in military history that I didn’t see
coming. This painting explores how that landscape effected me - surrounded by images and spirits from the year
1915.
28
MARY HUNT
“Afghanistan Dreaming Freedom” Revisits the Spirit of Gallipoli
Acrylic on Canvas
61cm x 61cm
The Australian soldier is once again on foreign soil fighting for freedom and human rights as expressed in the ideals of
the Gallipoli Club’s “Creed”.
The cultural uniform of the woman symbolises their oppression by the Taliban.
The women, like the Australian Military Forces are dreaming of perpetual peace and universal freedom.
29
MAX BERRY
Daybreak
Acrylic on Timber
60cm x 60cm
30
MERVYN APPLETON
The Stretcher Bearers
Oil
56cm x 71cm
My painting is a symbolic tribute to all the stretcher bearers in war and peace.
In my painting, the stretcher bearers rescue a fallen mate from the terrors of the battlefield, armed only with a first-aid
kit and a Red Cross armband.
The fire-fighters, police and paramedics of today, selflessly risk their own lives amongst the unknown dangers of
bushfires, floods and earthquakes. These men and women all continue to uphold the Club’s “Creed” of loyalty and
respect for their fellow men. They continue the true ANZAC spirit of courage, mateship and bravery forged on the
shores of Gallipoli.
I would hope that my great uncle Charlie Appleton heard the stretcher bearer’s call “We’ll help you digger” as he lay
mortally wounded on the ‘Daisy Patch’ at Helles, his mother would have hoped for this too.
31
NEIL LAREDO
A Letter Home
Oil
60cm x 90cm
Still today the letter is the thread between family and loved ones, conveying the inner most thoughts and allowing one
to escape reality for a brief moment.
I can remember my early days, when at 17 years of age I joined the Air Force and left home for the first time, the hope
of a letter, the anticipation of news that would transport you home for that brief moment. I can only imagine what the
importance of receiving a letter from home would have meant to those serving overseas during those dark days when
our youth was at war.
At the arrival of mail there would have been excitement at the anticipation of reading news from home and loved
ones, a time to escape reality. After reading the letter a longing for home and family would overcome you, a sense
of loneliness, it is then a time to keep those words close and to find time to answer. As your hand moves across the
paper and you contemplate each word it is a chance to be close for a moment longer.
The Letters of this period are often used to demonstrate the compassion and courage of a young nation that is now
part of the Australian Identity.
32
PAMELA J. GODSALL-SMITH
As We Passed By
Acrylic
50cm x 560cm
In September 1940 in Northam W.A. the 2/16th R.A.R. marched through town on their way to embarkation.
My father, Geoffrey Godsall, a Queenslander, was commissioned in 1938 and was Adjutant of the Regiment. My
mother, Joan, a Canberra girl, traveled to Perth to marry him.
The day they marched out she climbed onto the roof of the Northam Hotel and recorded the regiment on its way to the
railway station. The fascinating small black and white photo also captured the frieze of people assembled to watch
these young men pass by. In so many places all over Australia similar scenes were taking place.
Mother and other new wives drove alongside the train to Fremantle. The young men cheered and hallooed to them
throughout the journey, as if off to a party.
The 2/16th served with distinction in Egypt, and New Guinea. Few returned.
In 2011 my family and mother (92) witnessed a plaque dedication to the 2/16th at the Australian War Memorial.
Memorably, we met a man who, as a young Corporal with his troop, exhaustedly defended the Kokoda Track with only
a log between them and the invaders.
33
PAUL RYAN
I Was Young When I Left Home
Oil on linen
213cm x 122cm
I was young when I left home.
An’ I been out ramblin round
An’ I never wrote a letter to my home
To my home lord to my home
An’ I never wrote a letter to my home
Bob Dylan
A beautiful young man
At the very moment he faces mortality,
Both his and his enemies
Young no more
34
PENNY HARKNESS
Offering
Ink on Arches Paper
100cm x 56cm
Great tragedy and sacrifice are the eventual causes for celebration and joy because of the new life and community
they create. Even small personal acts of giving and sacrifice enable our human condition to transcend mediocrity and
enable us most fully to realize our dignity and our freedom.
“Affirmation of life even in its strangest and sternest problems, the will to life rejoicing in its own inexhaustibility
through the sacrifice of its’ highest types ...” Nietzsche
35
PETER GARDINER
highly commended
They Wore Feathers (Uncle Jim)
Oil on Canvas
130cm x 100cm
36
PETER SMEETH
Humanity Amidst the Carnage
(Gallipoli Truce 24th May 1915)
Oil on Canvas
75cm x 60cm
This painting is about the Truce called by the Turks on the 24th May 1915 to bury their 3,000 dead from the battle for
Second Ridge.
A Turkish officer looking at the horrific scene of carnage left by the battle remarked that, “At this spectacle even the
most gentle must feel savage and the most savage must weep”.
History tells us that many soldiers from both sides used this break in the hostilities to fraternise and swap badges and
cigarettes and this painting depicts a young Turkish soldier and a young Australian soldier exchanging water and a
cigarette.
This display of humanity, civility and mutual respect shows that the common soldiers on both sides had no quarrel
with each other and were in a situation not of their choosing.
Once the horrendous task of burying the dead was completed the troops were sent back to their trenches to resume
the horrible obscene business of war.
37
PETER C. SMITH
Remember me Cobber
Acrylic on Canvas Board
59cm x 30cm
The work was inspired by an early childhood memory of mine whilst living in Port Adelaide. I was taken aback by the
many older men horribly disfigured and disabled by their experience of war, Fromelles and Gallipoli in particular.
I was lost in the vision of those poor fellows who suffered the loss of the lower half of their bodies and got around on
boards on wheels.
One such gentleman was named old Doc and would stop and chat at the front gate with my grandfather Frank who
served in New Guinea in WW2.
Old Doc was a survivor of the Gallipoli campaign and told me of the saddest work detail that he endured during stint. This I hope is depicted in this work.
38
ROBYN SWEANEY
Last Light (ubi sunt)
Acrylic on Canvas
56cm x 67cms
When travelling through rural NSW and Victoria on my way to visit family, I cannot help but notice the soldier memorial
buildings that are such a common feature of Australian country towns. These structures are usually well maintained
and still a hub for social and cultural activities.
These (sometimes) modest structures, constructed after wars, were not commemorating war and conquest.
Communities built them because they wanted to remember the sacrifices that were made by men and women
for future generations to live in peace and to remember that life is so transient. These constructions are symbolic
testimonials of strong community spirit, evoke memory and retain a strong legacy of heart-felt emotion for local lives
lost.
My father and his father enlisted and served in the two of the great wars of the Twentieth Century.
My grandfather served in the 59th Battalion of the AIF, which fought in France and Belgium, where he was wounded
and gassed. The poppies in this painting are a dedication to him and the thousands of others who were not so lucky
and lost their lives on those muddy fields.
This painting is my ubi sunt to those who didn’t come home.
39
RUSSELL K. FULLER
Cpl of the Light Horse – Baluchi (The Spirit is Still Alive)
Acrylic
100cm x 82cm
This is a painting of a friend of mine Dougy, a member of 2/14 light horse regiment. This portrait reflects the steely
resolve and determination that he shared with the members of the regiment during his tour of duty.
It was on this tour that we lost a very good trooper “popy”, to a double stacked IED. Popy’s death was very hard to
take. “Popy was a real morale boost when things were down, he was always around with a laugh” But take it he did
and as hard as it was, Dougy got on with the job at hand as did the squadron.
I have portrayed Dougy in the last part of his tour, after the loss of his mate Popy. At this time the thought of going
home was stalking about in the back of his mind, and he needed all of his reserves to remain focussed. Loyalty,
courage and mateship got him through.
40
Samuel Kirby
Beds and Burnt Wood
Oil on Canvas
50cm x 61cm
Concepts of collective national memory/identity and themes of aural history inform the work Beds and burnt wood.
“Memory-feelings” a term used by Author Kenneth Pople to describe artist Stanley Spencer’s work, is used to talk
about a transitional thought process that involves possessing a memory, and recreating its feelings or “essence”
through art. In Beds and burnt wood, I have undertaken a similar process and emotionally reacted to my experience of
the collective memory of the ANZAC’s.
41
SEMA KAYNAK
Images of Conflict
Charcoal and Watercolour
113cm x 32cm
I have experimented with photocopied images of conflict, devastation and human suffering to develop a set of
intriguing drawings where realism and abstraction are woven into a metaphorical web that suggests the disjointed
memories of a survivor. I have used a subtle combination of muted colours to describe a devastated landscape. These
mediated images come from a variety of historical sources beginning with research into the experiences of soldiers at
Gallipoli in association with Australian values and those of my ancestral culture, Turkey.
42
SHARYN JONES
Special Bond
Acrylic
30cm x 43cm
Saddened while looking at photos of my nephew and his mates huddled around a small fire in the freezing desert
of Afghanistan on Christmas Eve, I comforted myself with the thought that he and these mates will forever share a
special bond.
I thought of them again when seeing these two old diggers greet each other at the Anzac Day march at Barraba – a
small town in rural NSW.
They were young soldiers once, like my nephew.
Someone said “You left their heads out”. But I felt that having the heads in the painting would have defined it as these
particular two men. I wanted the painting to represent all of our diggers regardless of the geography or the date of
their service.
The clasped hands tell of the tears and sadness, the goodness, the courage, the loyalty… the special bond that is truly
the spirit of Gallipoli.
43
Sherwin Peniel Smith
The Dawn Service –Reflections
Gouache on Canvas
65cm x 90cm
The historical anecdote on how the Dawn service came into being written by Peter FitzSimons provided the inspiration
for this painting. His words were so evocative that visual images just leapt out of the page.
The top third of my painting is of the event that was to produce the impetus for the creation of the Dawn Service.
The next panel shows past groups and families from both sides reflecting through the mists of time.
The final band shows the Dawn Service as it is today. It depicts how all Australians no matter their nationality come
together to reflect on the courage and sacrifice that symbolises the Anzac spirit.
Lest We Forget
44
TANNYA HARRICKS
The Forever Dogs
Oil on Fabric (stretched and sealed)
120cm x 75cm
A confident and optimistic young NZ Major flanked by his best mates and posing for a photo before heading to battle
at Gallipoli.
The painting process brought me closer to his story and the story of every man who fought at Gallipoli and didn’t
make it home. It made me thankful for the freedoms and opportunities my sons have growing up in Australia today.
My use of the French fabric represents the idea of the exotic, European travel experience that war offered young men
and is also a metaphor for the striped war ribbons awarded for bravery and heroism.
I have been painting dogs and their relationships with humans for a while now.
Dogs and humans have cohabitated for around 15,000 years through the worst and best of human history. The dogs
in my painting could represent loved ones left behind at home or comrades on the front line. Dogs keep us grounded
in reality and remind us that life isn’t sanitised. Just like war – life is sometimes muddy, loud and unfathomable. Dogs
also show us the true meaning of unconditional respect, love and loyalty. The canine companions in my painting sadly
outlived their master.
45
THOMAS LOWE
Coo-ee
Acrylic on Canvas
60cm x 90cm
This work is a relatively faithful interpretation of one of the Anzac Campaign’s contemporary recruitment posters.
As an observer, I find that particular artistic style of the early twentieth century uniquely interesting in both historical and aesthetic
terms. Without today’s modern means of mass communication, the poster was perhaps then the most effective way of advertising
for enlistment and as such its’ message was powerful and visually direct.
However, with hindsight we can witness the terrible human consequences of the First World War, and so the irony of the poster’s
wording hits home. It is this aspect, with its’ particularly Australian “Catch-Cry”, and the resultant courage of those who responded
to it which I hope forms the main emphasis of the picture.
46
Gallipoli Art Break
By Doug Conway, AAP, Senior Correspondent, SYDNEY, April 5 2012
A
rt can move the observer to tears, but is there a competition quite like the Gallipoli prize for moving the artists
to tears? Those who enter are paying tribute, as often as not, to a long-lost relative who was shot dead at Anzac
Cove or gassed on the Somme or bombed at Ypres. The artists may have carried around their loss, hurt and
heartbreak for years or even decades. The chance to paint it out seems to be a way of cleansing the soul. In some cases
the sorrow and anguish all but seep from the canvas and weep from the walls. The tears are not all metaphorical. It is
not uncommon for artists to deliver their works in person at Sydney’s Gallipoli Memorial Club, sponsor of the $20,000
prize, and to sob in the act of handing them over.
“Some turn up in tears,” said John Szetu, the club’s secretarymanager.
“It has been burning inside them for years, and the competition is
an outlet for them to express it.
“It’s a release, a burden off their shoulders.
“They have done something for their forefathers.
“Their paintings are a mark of respect.
“And every picture has a story.”
The artists get a chance to tell those stories in words as well as
pictures.
It’s unusual for art competitions to invite the painters to write a few
accompanying paragraphs, but in this context it works brilliantly.
The words at times can be as poignant as the images, helping to
explain or illuminate the motivation behind the brush strokes.
Chances are the entry is inspired by or dedicated to one of the
102,000 Diggers to have sacrificed their lives in war.
In that respect, this year’s finalists are no different.
Amber Martin’s “In His Blood” is a typical example.
It shows modern day soldier Matthew Thornton looking into a mirror
and seeing his image split, half of it morphing into his great, great
cousin, private Frederick Currey, who died of wounds at the Somme,
aged 21.
“They are two related Australian soldiers with similar facial features
and the same eyes,” she said, “who decades apart signed an oath,
prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to keep our shores
safe.”
Alan Jones was inspired by his grandfather,a World War Two veteran.
“Because of him and many other Anzacs, me and my brothers
were able to enjoy the innocence of youth in the safety of grandma’s
backyard,” wrote the Sydney painter.
“The only battles we have seen were on the football field or with
each other.”
Queenslander Beryl Wood, whose father-in-law fought in World War
One, painted a soldier in the trenches reading a letter from home,
surrounded by floating scraps of the letter, perhaps blasted apart.
“Though he rarely spoke of the conditions, he believed it was the
little things that helped the fighting men endure that terrible time,”
she commented.
Sydneysider Bill Nix remembered stopping at an Anzac memorial in
northern NSW on a family holiday and pondering the double tragedy
indicated by the same surname, Sweeny, appearing twice on the
memorial plaque.
“I imagined that Pop and Ma Sweeny’s dream was that their sons
would return and at least one boy would take up the plough,” he said.
“Alas, it wasn’t to be. Whether the Sweenys stayed on the farm or
moved away we’ll never know, but what is certain is that all of the
families of those heroes fallen lived in the shadow of grief.”
John Bartley, whose grandfather was a Light Horseman who died
young, has painted a blood-red work entitled “Sunset”.
“I like my painting for reasons I do not quite understand,” said the
country NSW artist, “only that it hits a chord within me that resonates
with loss and sadness.”
Canberra’s Margaret Hadfield, winner of the inaugural Gallipoli art
prize in 2006, has painted a modern visitor at Anzac Cove surrounded
by images and spirits from the battles of 1915.
“The Gallipoli landscape is spectacular but holds the blood and
spirit of far too many young men,” she said.
“My visit unleashed an interest in military history that I didn’t see
coming.”
New Zealander Mervyn Appleton painted stretcher bearers whose
call “We’ll help you Digger” he hoped was heard on the battlefield by
his great uncle Charlie Appleton.
Robyn Sweaney of Mullumbimby, NSW, dedicated the poppies in her
“Last Light” to her grandfather, who fought in France and Belgium,
and the thousands of others “who were not so lucky and lost their
lives on those muddy fields”.
Manilla, NSW, artist Sharyn Jones said her painting of a handshake,
“Special Bond”, sprang from the sadness she felt looking at photos of
her hephew and his mates huddled around a campfire in the freezing
desert of Afghanistan one Christmas eve.
One of the judges, John McDonald, said he could not fail to be
touched by the number of artists whose relatives fought for their
country.
“The prize has given these artists a reason to reflect on the sacrifices
and hardships shared by Australian and also Turkish soldiers,” he said.
“This is not the same as choosing a famous face to paint for the
Archibald or a landscape for the Wynne.”
The Gallipoli art prize is not restricted to Gallipoli or to scenes of
battle but honours the artist whose work best expresses the club’s
creed of loyalty, respect, courage, comradeship, peace and freedom.
It’s about keeping those values alive, so that they aren’t lost like the
objects entombed in the trenches depicted by Sydney painter Geoff
Harvey in his archeology-inspired work “Trench Interment”.
“Here they lived, ate, slept, fought and often died, surrounded by the
hardware of war,” Harvey said.
“The ammunition, the digging implements, spanners and their
personal belongings are etched by time and history into the fabric of
my canvas.”
Perhaps it’s an artist’s way of saying: Lest we forget.
Reproduced with permission of Australian Associated Press
Gallipoli Memorial Club Museum Fund Inc