deborahgowerceramics

It was an early start.  I was up at 1:30 am (in the morning) to go Villes Bretonneau for the ANZAC Dawn Service.  What an emotionally stunning service.  I only have the one picture because it was raining and there were 6000 people at the ceremony.   Before dawn the darkness and the rain combined to create a sense of what it must have been like for the Australian Soldiers one hundred years ago.  Cold and wet.  And as the dawn broke to a new day Commemorative Wreaths were laid to honour those who serve/d in all wars.   The Mayor of Fromelles laid a particularly beautiful wreath and after the ceremony I was able to lay a wreath card from Mullumbimby.

While I was there I said a prayer for Joseph Ambrose Sylvester Halcroft – He was the grandfather of a friend of mine from Mullumbimby.  Joseph died in the first world war and  is buried at Villes Bretonneau and his granddaughter Jo wrote a very special message on one of the Australian War Memorial Crosses.

Mid morning I attended a civic reception with the Mayor of Fromelles, Jean Gabriel Masson at the Town Hall in Villers- Bretonneux. This was followed by a Memorial Service and then the Annual ANZAC Day Concert.

Then to the Hamel memorial

and then to Bullecourt.  AT Bullecourt there was one ceremony at the memorial statues in the town.  After that we walked behind the band and the main party, moving to the sound of Waltzing Matilda and Click Go the Shears and some stirring French tunes.  We walked up to the battlefields and the Digger Memorial Statue.  I liked this last ceremony very much – the school children read poems and participated in the ceremony and there was a wonderful community spirit.

Lest We Forget

Debby xxx

A big hello to the scouts from Bayview NSW http://bayviewseascouts.com/index.htm who were at the Pheasant Wood ANZAC ceremony and the students from Perth Australia who participated in the ceremony.

  This hat belonged to the son of a man who was involved with the research/location/excavation of the graves at Fromelles.  The son served with the Australian Army in Afghanistan.

Debby

I spent an inspiring day going to three different services in Fromelles to commemorate ANZAC Day.

First was at the “Don’t Forget Me Cobber” Statute at the Cobbers Memorial.  On 19 July 1916 so many of our soldiers died and were buried in mass graves behind the German lines and not identified for almost 100 years. The 5th Australian Division suffered 5,533 casualties, over 90% of the infantry involved in the attack. The 61st Division suffered 1,547 casualties, some 50% of their attacking strength.  I will talk more on Pheasant Wood graves identification later.

The Second ceremony was at VC Corner. The Mayor of Fromellles Jean-Gabriel Masson gave a moving speech and tribute to the Australian Soldiers who lost their lives fighting to defend the village of Fromelle in the First World War.

Then we moved to the Pheasant Wood Military Cemetery.  At this ceremony there was a burning of Eucalyptus leaves as an emotionally beautiful symbolic gesture to cleanse the past and start anew friendships between all cultures.

If you are in Fromelles be sure to visit the new Pheasant Wood Museum. http://www.musee-bataille-fromelles.fr/?lang=en

Debby

For my first few days I stayed with Monique and Gerard.  They were so kind to me and I felt very much at home.  Monique is the author of her own book on Fromelles and I was inspired by 2 of her pictures for my first pieces I will make in Fromelles.

Monique is also an excellent cook and I tried different breads and cheeses, Hare Casserole and was spoilt with her cooking.

Gerard speaks English very well and was so helpful translating.  He has a good knowledge of Fromelles and took me to see some of the monuments, giving me background on the battle and important aspects of the history of Fromelles.  With this knowledge I can add depth and interpretation to my ceramic pieces.

I also found out they have good beer here in Fromelles.  My favourite is a Belgium Beer called Troll.  and when they serve beer the glasses match.  Gerard even drove me all the way to Belgium to purchase a special glass to take home.

This is the view from my Bedroom

Thank you to Monique and Gerard for making my first days in Fromelles so inspiring and comfortable.

Debby

This is my new studio for the next few weeks. Set in a small village in Northern France I have the unique opportunity to work with local inhabitants and forge new friendships between our two communities. I also met some lovely Aussies the other day who came into visit

“Once Lost Never Forgotten” is a seven week project in Fromelles France.

• The Project takes inspiration from the battle of Fromelles and the efforts to identify some of the 5500 men who lost their lives in 24 hours on 26 July 1916 at that battle.
• I am working with descendants and school children to remember the local ANZACs and develop artwork.

I will update my site regularly for you all to follow.  Thanks for your kind comments on FB

Debby

The Australian War Memorial Education Page http://www.awm.gov.au/education/classroom-showcase/ has some pictures up of the Commemorative Crosses Artwork that we did for Re-Membering Our ANZACs exhibition.  Check out their page for other information about World War One and the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

Debby

Re-membering Our ANZACs  November 11-17 Mullumbimby Ex-Services Club –  An exhibition commemorating the sacrifice made by our local community in World War One opens directly after the Remembrance Day service at the Cenotaph, Mullumbimby. 

Under the direction of local Ceramic Artist Deborah Gower, the exhibition had artworks inspired by the memorabilia of descendants/relatives of Mullumbimby soldiers who fought in the First World War and one special artwork made from wooden crosses.  The crosses supplied by the Australian War Memorial have messages of commemoration written by descendants of veterans of WW1 and local Year 6 students from St John’s Catholic School and Mullumbimby Public School.  Workshops with students and descendants outlined the role and sacrifices of local men and their families in the First World War and participants learnt more about our local ANZACs putting faces to names normally written in stone, before writing messages of commemoration.

“I am honoured to be part of this project.  It brought to life the names of veterans who are commemorated at the Cenotaph in Dalley Street and gave character to the faces on the photographs that appear in the gallery of the Ex-Services Club.”

The crosses were hung as an artwork in the Ex-Services Club at Mullumbimby before being returned to the Australian War Memorial for distribution on the graves of fallen soldiers overseas.

Funding was granted under the ANZAC Centenary Local Grants Program for the Re-membering Our ANZACS   November 11 – 17  Ex-Services Club Dalley St Mullumbimby 2484.

Thank you to

the ANZAC Centenary Local Grants Program, Department of Veterans Affairs, Australian War Memorial, Mullumbimby RSL Sub Branch, Mullumbimby RSL Women’s Auxiliary, Ex-Services Club Mullumbimby, 41st Royal NSW Regiment Lismore, St John’s Catholic School, Mullumbimby Public School, Office Choice, PSPhotographics, Mullumbimby Printworks, Mullumbimby Men’s Shed

and special thanks to

WW1 descendants and the Mullumbimby community for support with this project

 Photo by Paul Schneider Photographics

Known Only to God by Deborah Gower (2014)

Re-Membering Our ANZACs

Ceramic 40cm diameter

‘For one hundred years many soldiers lay unidentified – buried deep beneath the shell shocked earth in Northern France.  In one day Australian casualties (dead or injured) amounted to approx. 5000 young men.  Recently many of the dead have been identified through the technology of DNA.  One of our Mullumbimby locals is presently having her DNA tested to identify a long lost relative killed in the Battle of Fromelles in July 1916.”