Painting by Scarlett Raven and Marc Marot: A Soldier's Own Diary[/caption]
Scarlett is passionate about colour, her dynamic approach often sees her use her hands rather than a brush to apply oil paint. Her sweeping arm gestures create movement and direction, with the artist being likened to Anselm Kiefer and Jackson Pollock. Scarlett says:
“The paint is thrown on, splattered and flicked. When it lands, it captures the flowers blowing in the wind. The movement must be in every layer, so when you step back you feel like the landscape is alive. It creates a whole world of magic.”Marc Marot, who enjoyed a successful career as a record executive before joining forces with oil painter Scarlett, says:
“Our work is highly emotionally-charged, and its power lies in allowing our audience to immerse themselves in very powerful feelings. It takes them out of the here and now. We don’t hold an exhibition, we hold a visual experience.”Their latest collaboration is ‘The Soldier’s Own Diary', a unique oil painting which, when viewed through the Blippar app, tells the remarkable story of a Cwmbran prisoner of war named Robert Phillips. How? Watch artist Scarlett Raven's video to find out: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97TyNtgsE68&w=560&h=315] Robert Phillips was born in New Tredegar in 1893. He joined The Welsh Regiment in 1914, but following a gas attack he was captured at Ypres and sent to work at a camp 200 miles away in Homburg, Western Germany. In 1916, after 15 months in German captivity, he managed to escape and began making his way home to Wales on foot. A fellow prisoner was an astrologer, and Phillips was able to navigate his way north to Holland using the stars as a guide. It took him months of walking at night, stealing chickens and eggs to survive the journey, before he finally made it back to Wales during the winter of 1916. Artists Marc and Scarlett would like to thank Robert's granddaughter Lynda Osbourne for allowing them into her home to both learn about him and photograph his original artefacts. These included his diary, which he kept in 1917 after returning to Wales and inspired the naming of the painting. Prior to her death in 2015 Marc's Wrexham-born mother made him promise to create a painting for Wales, so 'The soldier’s own diary' is dedicated to both her and the brave men of Wales who sacrificed so much. Castle Fine Art Cardiff, which represent the artists, have kindly loaned us the painting in time for Remembrance so that it can be experienced by the people of Wales, many of whom can relate to the story of Private Phillips.
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‘The Soldier’s Own Diary’ forms part of our 2018 Remembrance programme, alongside ‘The Women’s Suffrage Movement in Wales’. An organised women's suffrage movement operated continuously in Britain for more than sixty years, with partial enfranchisement won in 1918 and equal voting rights with men finally achieved ten years later. This exhibition aims to provide a snapshot of Wales's part in this lengthy and multifaceted campaign, the photographs, images and artefacts seeking to illustrate some of its principal elements. Exhibitions: ‘The Soldier’s Own Diary’ by Scarlett Raven and Marc Marot / ‘The Women’s Suffrage Movement in Wales’ Date: 1-25 November 2018 Location: Senedd, Cardiff Bay [caption id="attachment_5015" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
L-R: Women's Freedom League, Cardiff branch; Suffragette Grand March, London 1918. Copyright: MediaWales[/caption]
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