Now all roads lead to France and heavy is the tread
Of the living; but the dead returning lightly dance.
Edward Thomas, Roads

Sunday, September 20, 2020

Over the Top: The War Illustrations of Norman Lindsay


Display at Australia's Norman Lindsay Gallery and Cottage


Norman Lindsay was born in Victoria, Australia, on 23 February 1879. After working as a sports illustrator in Melbourne he joined the Sydney Bulletin in 1901 and eventually became the newspaper's chief cartoonist. A painter, sculptor, and book illustrator, he produced a vast amount over seven decades of productivity.  Lindsay was asked on the outbreak of the First World War to produce a series of propaganda posters for the Allies.  During the First World War he produced a large body of recruiting posters and cartoons. Many of them were jingoistic and some, including some pro-conscription drawings, were highly controversial. He used an "ogre" figure in a number of his piece to represent Germany. Played by Sam Neill, Lindsay was portrayed as a unconventional libertine in the 1994 film Sirens  He is today recognized as one of Australia's greatest artists. Lindsay died on 21s November 1969. I've sorted the images below into two self-explanatory groups.  All are representative of Lindsay's war work.

Conventional Posters






And Now, Something Different






Now, Meet the Artist and a Friend




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