Monday 23 April 2018

Our Eternal Home


Six years ago I began working on a book that tried to uncover the stories behind the list of 50 names that are etched into the heavy oak commemoration board that is housed in the Library at King Edward VI School, Southampton. The Stormy Blast was published by Natula in 2013, by which time I had set up Single Step Tours. As one of several trial runs at bespoke battlefield tours, I took my colleague Mike Long to the Somme. We were on the trail of his uncle, a young artillery officer who was killed in 1918.
This morning I managed a sneak preview of Mike’s own reflection on the War, a statue finished in bronze that will stand in one of the quads in the school building. Two years in the making, the piece is an eloquent and clever statement on the war. Working with Talos Art Foundry near Andover, Mike is a specialist in working in bronze, and is keen to follow up with more large scale commissions.





Three young men (whose detailed uniforms make it clear are representative of the army, the navy and the airforce) are fused, arm in arm, an embodiment of the enthusiasm of the young recruits. They share a hymn book, and the lines from the school hymn are etched into the base - “Time, like an ever rolling stream/Bears all its sons away...”
The quote is just one detail that the eye is drawn to in this quite startling piece of art. A trench line, a propeller, flare gun, a bullet holed canteen. The detritus of war, the horrific experiences that lie in wait for these smiling young men as they belt out the hymn for the last time at their “eternal home”.
For me, there are some familiar names - O.J. Hobbs, the science teacher killed at the Ancre in November 1916. Arthur Wolfe, the school’s head boy, his prize pupil, who followed him to a Somme grave in February 1917. This statue bears witness to their sacrifice.
Zoom in further - some will pick out the cap badges, cast from original WW1 badges, including Mike’s own uncle’s. Others will see the flies on the horse’s head - astonishingly, cast from real flies that were buzzing all around his studio. This is art that will reward a careful look. Not surprisingly given the artist’s background, this is art that teaches without lecturing, and is designed to make us think about the war and about rememberance.

“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” Edgar Degas

Play Up and Play the Game!


Heavily involved in the planning of a Compiegne Rugby Festival this November, when we hope to put 7 a side teams together from all over Europe. Hoping they’ll answer the call...
Just as sportsmen from all countries were drawn in to the recruiting campaigns between 1914-1918.

A bit different to piecing together itineraries for bespoke battlefield or cultural tours, but enjoying the challenge.