14 October 1999

Falklands Commander to meet Dundee artists

An imaginative project bringing art to Falklands Islands servicemen and islanders via artists and students at Duncan of Jordanstone College will be top of the agenda on Friday (15/10) when the commander of Britain's troops on the islands, Brigadier David Nicholls visits the University of Dundee.

The Commander of British Forces Falklands Islands will be discussing plans, already well advanced, for the Dundee artists to brighten the lives of those stationed on the Falklands through turning one of the longest and, allegedly, grimmest military corridors in the world into an art gallery.

Led by senior lecturer Elaine Shemilt, the artists plan a complete make-over of the 1,000 yard passageway, known as the "Death Star Corridor", incorporating several exhibition areas and pitting their interior and graphic design expertise to the challenge of making the soulless corridor a "life-enhancing experience".

The team - Gareth Fisher, Gary Gowans, Roland Ashcroft and Andy Rice - are already producing original art works for the project following a trip to the Falklands base at the invitation of the MOD who are funding the project. Next month they plan to return there with a party of eight students to install the first of the exhibition areas. While there they will also give a series of lectures and workshops to the Islanders at the invitation of the Shackleton Trust.

"This is a very exciting project and particularly pertinent to Dundee with its historical links with this part of the world," said Elaine. "Our plans include the creation of eight points of artistic interest to help improve the quality of the life of the men and women serving in the Falklands. It is to Brigadier Nicholls' great credit that he has had the vision and will to initiate this project on behalf of their service men and women. We're also delighted to be able to help enrich the lives of the islanders themselves through a programme of cultural activities."

Also on show in the Millennium Corridor will be an exhibition of war art and graffiti executed by soldiers during the Falklands War and "discovered" by the Dundee artists in storage, virtually unseen, in an old refrigeration plant in Ajax Bay. The works, described as "naïve art", are believed to be of unique historical and cultural value. Says Elaine: "These are art works. They are laboriously and carefully constructed and should not be seen as graffiti alone. Many of these soldiers were in at the sharp edge. They were putting down their feelings, their emotions, their fears. It may have come across in the form of a poem or a cartoon character, but actually when you get the collection together you really do have an impression of how intense that situation was. They give unique insight into a period in our recent history - that's their true value."

The war art is expected to be exhibited in Dundee at some future date./ends

Contact Elaine Shemilt 01382 345145