BATTLELAND
BATTLELAND
Battleland seeks to represent contemporary landscapes from rejuvenated World War One battlefields along the Western Front. Soil and flower samples were collected in order to create organic chromatographs to represent traces of matter that are otherwise dormant and unseen. The artworks seek to highlight the fate of many thousands of fallen soldiers that still reside in the soil. Photographs a centenary later show how the landscape has healed but traces of the battles still remain. The chromatographs in this book were created using a soil quality technique developed by German scientist Ehrenfried Pfeiffer (1899-1961). His intention was to analyse the organic compounds of soil, flora and fauna for the purposes of agricultural quality testing. The process uses a dilution of silver nitrate as a photosensitive base for the circular filter papers. The secondary organic material is soaked in sodium hydroxide and the process is repeated. Finally, the filter paper is exposed to sunlight in order for the characteristics of the sample to appear. Sarah Barnes
Passchendaele Lavender
Passchendaele Soil
Comines-Warneton Christmas Truce Soil
‘I suppose I can endure cold, and fatigue, and the face to face death, as well as another; but extra for me there is the universal pervasion of Ugliness. Hideous landscapes, vile noises, foul language, even from one’s own mouth (for all are devil ridden). Everything is unnatural, broken, blasted; the distortion of the dead, whose unburiable bodes sit outside the dug-outs all day, all night, the most execrable sights on earth, In poetry we call them the most glorious, But to sit with them all day, all night … and a week later to come back and find them still sitting there in motionless groups THAT is what saps the ‘soldierly spirit.’ Lieutenant Wilfred Owen MC, Manchester Regiment
Cornflower Seeds
Wild Poppy Seeds
Thiepval Soil
Delville Wood Soil
Mametz Wood Soil
Acorns Delville Wood
Wildflowers Bouzincourt
Hill 60 Soil
Wildflowers Langemark-Poelkapelle
‘Very fatiquing night march to Polincove, going to sleep in the saddle. Weather very warm. Although we had billets, some of us slept in the open. Fred Smith and I slept under a hedge. It was most enjoyable and healthy. It was Fred’s last bit of pleasure under the sun and fresh wind - he was killed at Ypres, buried hastily near the guns. His body was blown up a few days after and scattered about over the mud and slime. He was a jolly fine fellow and was my very good friend. I hope if there’s another and better world that he is there. He’s well earned it.’ Gunner Alfred Finningan, Royal Field Artillery
Wildflowers Vimy
Hindenburg Line Soil
Thistle Polygon Wood
Wild Poppy Beumont Hamel
Mushrooms Langemark
Red Berries Hindenburg Line
Blackberries Mametz Wood
‘Quite a number of the men were still alive, and they were crying out and begging for water. They plucked at our legs as we went by. One hefty chap did grab me by – round both legs and held me, and I was going to take the cork out of my hot water bottle to give him a drink, and I was immediately prodded on from behind by someone saying, ‘get on, get on, we’re going to lose touch with the column in front. We shall get lost.’ In the years that have passed that man’s pleadings have haunted me.’ Private Edward Glendinning, Sherwood Foresters
‘I said to a German, ‘excuse me but how can you be fighting for freedom? You started the war and we are fighting for freedom’, and he said, ‘excuse me, English comrade – Kamerad – but we are fighting for freedom. For our country.’ And I say, ‘You also put, ‘Here rests in God, ein unbekannter Held ‘ Here rests in God an unknown hero. In God? ‘Oh yes, God is on our side’ he said. I said, ‘he’s on our side.’ And that was a tremendous shock. One began to think that these chaps, who were like ourselves, whom we liked and who felt about the war as we did. The two sides began to argue over who would win the war, until the German said: “Well English comrade, do not let us quarrel on Christmas Day.’ Private Henry Williamson, London Rifle Brigade
Sunflowers Passchendaele
Wildflowers Longueval
‘I found myself sinking down in the mud, and this time I didn’t worry about the mud. I didn’t hate it any more. It seemed like a protective blanket covering me and I thought to myself, well if this is death, it is not so bad.’ John Palmer, Gunner RFA
Cambrai Soil
Conkers Cambrai
‘I think I got a nasty stomach feeling that I can’t describe… abject fear. You’re not paralysed, actually, but it takes all the stuffing out of you. You just don’t know what to do, what to do for the best – whether to get up and go or stop where you are or what to do. Everybody was in the same boat, I mean big men and little men all suffered the same. It was a terrific, terrible feeling really.’ NCO Frederick Higgins
Acorns Delville Wood
Messines Soil