Geoff Harvey Gallipoli - 100 years 7 - 29 April 2015
Robin Gibson Gallery modern + contemporary
1. Too young for war 80x110cm acrylic on board $3,300 Leaving the country school playground and heading off to war, this under aged enlisted boy used his older brothers name and age to enlist
Both of my grandfather’s saw active service overseas in WW1. My father went to Papua New Guinea in WW2 as an enlisted soldier and an under age boy. He worked in the causality clearance stations in Port Moresby & Lae Province for the duration of the war. In honour of their memory & in absolute respect to all the armed force personal that served in both wars I painted this series of Gallipoli paintings. The series is narrative in style & it is my interpretation of the events that occurred during the campaign of 1915. I am a pacifist & I hate war so it was difficult, at times, for me to research. The unnecessary death, destruction & disturbing images of conflict were not a focal point of my work. I preferred to narrate the moving accounts of the soldier’s life during the Gallipoli campaign. There were many aspects and stories to be told about this conflict. Most were sombre, but others were lighthearted and revealed the diggers loyalty to each other. Some diggers were larrikins and their humour helped them and others to endure the campaign. It was and will always remain an important part of our history as a nation. We must never forget the individual sacrifices, the bravery & valour of these men and women of the armed forces. And to want a peaceful world for everyone.
2. Training in Egypt 60x65cmcm acrylic on board $2,200 The 1st Division and NZ trained in Egypt and prepared to land at Gaba Tepe
3. Going to War 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 A horse is precariously loaded onto a troop transport ship
4. Practice landing 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 The stretcher-bearers on the Greek Island of Lemnos practice drill in preparation for the theatre of war
5. The voyage 110x80cm acrylic on board $3,300 The troops travelled from Lemnos to the landing at Gallipoli by large war ships
6. The landing 82x120cm acrylic on board $3,300 That ill fated day on the 25 April when the troops set foot on Gallipoli for the first time
7. Digging in 41x51cm acrylic canvas board $1,600 The ANZACs dug in and held their ground even against the massive offensive of the Turks on the 19th May when a force of 42000 attacked them
8. Fallen trooper 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 A trooper is shot in action and falls to his death from the cliff at Gallipoli
9. John Simpson (Kirkpatrick) & his donkey 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Assisted wounded men from the frontline until he was killed on the 19th May shot in the heart
10. A reflective moment 45x45cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 John Simpson (Kirkpatrick) washes his donkey before resuming the endless task of helping the wounded
11. Helping hands 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Everyone helped each other in this dreadful ordeal
12. Wounded 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 The wounded were transported to Lemnos or Egypt and later repatriated back to Australia if they could no longer fight. The other soldiers were ‘patched up’ and sent back to battle
13. Nurse Kate 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Field hospitals were a necessary part of the campaign and many nurses help the casualties to recover form their horrible wounds
14. Chaplin Gillison 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Chaplin Gillison conducted church services and funerals and gave hope to the troops. He was killed 22 Aug while attempting to rescue a wounded man
15. Water 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 There was little drinking water at the beach so water carrying was necessary to keep the troops going. Special carriers worked night and day to keep up the supply for the fighting men
16. Night Guard 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 It was the job of the night guards to oversee the camps safety at night
17. Spirit in the sky 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Battle weary & exhausted these young soldiers showed enormous courage & truly deserve the to be remembered at the ANZAC’s
18. Bathing in the sea 1 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 At North Beach where it was relatively safe the troops bathed in the sea after a day in the trenches. This was as enormous relief for the troops and their horses
19. Bathing in the sea 2 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Riding and bathing in the sea was a release for the troops from the horror of war. It was probably what kept many of them sane during their unbelievable struggle. This was the first picture I did in the series from a blurry photo I stumbled across. There was something very special about the image and it inspired me to undertake this present series
20. Letters from home 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Eagerly awaited mail from home helped to keep the boys spirits up. Here two diggers read and re-read their recent letters from their loved ones
21. The Coming of Winter 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Living in dug outs the troops suffered frostbite and trench foot as well as horrible gale force winds. Winter was the enemy
22. Winter's mission 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 Morale was down as the winter locked in on the troops & life would have been almost unbearable if it had not been for the close bonds formed by the men. Finally the order was given for the troops to evacuate and a clever plan was hatched to hide the evacuation form the Turks
23. Leaving 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 The evacuation was carefully planned and troops were gradually leaving
24. Cricket at Shell Green 88x120cm acrylic on board $3,300 As the troops secretly evacuated on the 17 December a distraction for the Turks was provided by a game of cricket. Also elaborate ruses were set up to cover for the emptiness as the troops continued to evacuate. And it worked well
25. The Evacuation 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 The 7th Battalions was the last to be evacuated from Gallipoli on the 20th of December. Safe at last for at least now
26. Tricked 41x51cm acrylic on canvas board $1,600 The Turkish officers watched as the last of the allied ships withdrew from the Gallipoli Peninsular. The allies had successfully fooled the Turks into believing that they were still in the trenches until they were all safe
27. The Homecoming 82x120cm acrylic on board $3,300 Some of the wounded soldiers were sent home to welcoming families and loved ones. Others were deployed to Europe to continue the struggle
Biography 1954 1974 1977 1987
Born, Sydney. Lives & works in Sydney National Art School, Sydney Diploma in Art, Alexander Mackie College of Advanced Education MA Fine Art, City Art Institute
Geoff Harvey has appeared in numerous group exhibitions in Australia, England and USA including Sculpture by the Sea from 1997 – 2006 & regularly in the annual sculpture survey at the Robin Gibson Gallery Solo Exhibitions 1985 1986 1987 19891990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2003 2004 2005 2009 2011, 2012, 2014 & 2015 Robin Gibson Gallery, Sydney 2013 Beware of The Dog, Hazelhurst Regional Gallery, Gymea Nudes, Kenthurst Gallery, Dural NSW 2010 UTS Gallery, Sydney SLOT Gallery, Sydney – installation 2003 Geoff Harvey does Summer, Manning Regional Art Gallery 1999 Pack of Wolves, Newcastle Region Art Gallery, NSW 1996 Lake Macquarie City Gallery, Lake Macquarie Chapman Gallery, ACT 1992 Australian Embassy, Paris Browse & Darby, London Survey Exhibition “Abracadabra”, travelling to Manly Museum & Art Gallery, Newcastle City Gallery and Dubbo Regional Art Gallery
Solo Exhibitions continued 1990-92 University of Western Sydney, Sydney 1989 Solander Gallery, Canberra 1988 BMG Gallery, Adelaide 1983 Broken Hill Regional Art Gallery, NSW 1977 to 1980 & 1983 Rex Irwin, Sydney Awards 2013 Rockdale OPutdoor Gallery Sculpture Prize, Sydney 2012 Gallipoli Art Award, Sydney Rockdale Outdoor Gallery Sculpture Award, Sydney 2011 “Love where you live”, Tempe Photo Award, Sydney 2002 Children’s Choice Award, Sculpture by the Sea 2001 Willoughby Sculpture Prize, Sydney 1998 Willoughby Sculpture Prize ‘People’s Choice’, Sculpture by the Sea 1995 Scott Cargo Prize for Contemporary Sculpture 1989 RAS painting Prize, Sydney
Awards continued 1984 Cowra Painting Prize, Cowra RAS Modern Figurative Prize(Second), Sydney 1983 Blake Prize, Sydney 1979 Visual Arts Board Grant Commissioned Members’ Print, Print Council of Australia 1978 RAS Painting Prize, Sydney Collections AGNSW National Gallery of Australia, Canberra Art Gallery of South Australia National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Hobart Newcastle Regional Gallery, NSW Goldberg Collection, New York University of Western Sydney Bar Association of New South Wales Sly and Weigall, Sydney Tamworth Regional Gallery, NSW Abbott Tout Russell Kennedy, Sydney Arthur Anderson and Company, Sydney Manly Museum and Art Gallery, NSW Allen Allen and Hemsley, Sydney (now Allens Arthur Robinson) Pancontinental, USA Faber Castell, Sydney Dobell Foundation, Sydney Atlantic Richfield, USA
Collections continued Parliament House, Canberra The University of New South Wales, Sydney Print Council of Australia, Melbourne IBM, Sydney Northern Rivers College of Advanced Education NSW Philip Morris Art grant, Canberra BHP, NSW Hamilton Collection, Melbourne Artbank, Sydney Flinders University, South Australia Department of Foreign Affairs, Canberra West Australian Institute of Technology, Perth Freemantle Art Centre, WA Burnie Art Gallery, Tasmania Dubbo City Art Gallery, NSW Warrnambool Art Gallery, Victoria Bathurst City Art Gallery, NSW Maitland City Art Gallery, NSW Broken Hill City Art Gallery, NSW Gold Coast City Art Gallery, Queensland Wollongong City Art Gallery, NSW Wagga Wagga City Art Gallery, NSW Rockhampton City Art Gallery, Queensland Lismore Regional Art Gallery, NSW Rex Hotel, Kings Cross, Sydney Mercantile Mutual, Sydney McDonalds, Sydney Macarthur University of Western Sydney Tweed Head Regional Art Gallery , NSW University of Sydney Union Gallipoli Club, Sydney Cowra Regional Art Gallery, NSW University of Technology Sydney
Collections continued Bailieu Myer’s Elgee Sculpture Park, Victoria St Vincents Hospital, Sydney Parliament House, Sydney Novotel Hotel. Darling Harbour, Sydney Rupert Murdoch, News Coprporation, Sydney Campbelltown City Bicentennial Art Gallery Brookfield Multiplex Private collections in New Zealand, UK, USA, France, Switzerland & Hong Kong Summers Reserve - Sutherland Shire NSW Hazelhurst Regional Gallery & Arts Centre, Gymea
Robin Gibson Gallery modern + contemporary
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