Generations in Conflict

2025
watercolour on watercolour paper
151 x 69 cm

Following my time at St John of God Hospital, I rediscovered art therapy. While photography was my initial outlet, I found unexpected solace in watercolour painting. What started as therapy became a personal journey of remembrance and healing.

My first painting was based on a blurred photograph from my Iraq deployment, capturing an approach to an improvised explosive device (IED) incident. Recreating it helped me process the trauma which led to this series of five paintings, each honouring a chapter of my family's multi-generational wartime service, connecting my family's legacy with my own:

Western Front: Honouring my great-grandfather in the 38th Battalion, wounded at Passchendaele during the First World War.

Gull Force: Remembering my great-uncle, Richard, who served in the 2/21st Battalion and died as a prisoner of war during the Second World War.

106th Tank Attack Regiment: Depicting my grandfather in New Guinea manning a 6-pound anti-tank gun in the Second World War.

WAAAF: Showing my grandmother, a drill instructor and cypher assistant during the Second World War, with added colour to show a personal connection with myself.

Iraq – Returning to my own experience with Al Muthanna Task Group II, responding to a roadside IED, the original blurred image becoming the foundation.