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| AMary Riter Hamilton Exhibition Panel |
Mary Riter Hamilton was commissioned by the Canadian War Amputees Association to go and paint what she saw of the desolation left by the conflict. In May 1919, Mary travelled to France, where she lived for three years in a tin hut among the members of the Chinese Labour Corps who cleared away the mess left by the conflict.
Can you imagine what it must have been like to live there back then? The water table had become contaminated early on in the war and food was scarce. As local people began to return to the area, they shared their food with Mary but it obviously was not like the food you can get if you visit the area now! Food was scarce and indigestible.
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| One of Mary's paintings on the Western Front |
Nothing daunted, Mary painted on, in spite of being attacked by some of the members of the gangs of bounty hunters, etc that roamed the area in the immediate aftermath of the war. Her health suffered and she lost the sight of one eye. Before she returned home, some of Mary's amazing paintings went on display in London and Paris. When she returned to Canada, Mary donated her 300+ paintings to the National Archives and never painted again. Photo: one of Mary Riter Hamilton's paintings on the Western Front.
You can see more of Mary's WW1 work on www.collectionscanada.gc.ca and find out more about the Canadian War Amps onwww.waramps.ca
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| "Trenches on the Somme" by Mary Riter Hamilton |
