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Sahagun 1808
Large mural - acrylic on plaster -
size 7m x 2.75m
Discovery Museum - Newcastle
A lovely project...
the
image depicts the 15th. Hussars as they are about to hit the French
dragoons at Sahagun.
This commission was made more enjoyable thanks to the help of
Ralph the curator (an ex Hussar himself) who was a mine of
information about the battle and, from his store-rooms, he was
able to show
me the weapons, uniforms and horse-tack that would have been used on
the actual campaign.
The Hussars have
since 'traded-in' their horses for Saracen tanks, being light weight
and fast (as
tanks go). They still perform essentially the same duties as
their Napoleonic predecessors, being the 'eyes and ears' of the army on the
ground.
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Part
of 'A Soldiers Life' exhibition
includes a cubical with a gun sight
from a Saracen tank. I was informed that the tank sight was
the same price as a
small house. My task was to paint the rest of this cubical to
give
the viewer the impression off being inside the turret of a tank. The
only way I could truly achieve this was to experience being
inside a real tank, so the army kindly let me 'have a go'
in one of theirs. Some days I just love my job........... I never know
where I
will end up next.
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