The Canadian Forces Artists Program (or CFAP) was established on June 6, 2001, by the then-
Chief of Defence Staff Maurice Baril
Joseph Gérard Maurice Baril, (born September 22, 1943) is a retired general officer in the Canadian Forces, a military advisor to the United Nations Secretary-General and head of the Military Division of the Department of Peacekeeping Operation ...
.
Its purpose is to document, in the form of art,
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...
soldiers serving at home and abroad.
History
The CFAP was a successor to several other art programs. The tradition got its formal start in Canada in 1916, with the creation of the
Canadian War Memorials Fund. 800 paintings, sculptures and prints were completed throughout the First World War. Most of the works submitted were by artists already serving with the military. In 1919, the CFAP displayed works in Toronto, New York, London and Montréal. These works are now located in the
Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum (CWM) () is a National museums of Canada, national museum on the military history of Canada, country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military hist ...
, the
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada (), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's National museums of Canada, national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the List of large ...
and the Senate of Canada.
Another art program, the Canadian War Records Program, was started in 1942. This was primarily to document the forces in conflict during the Second World War. This program folded at the conclusion of the war.
After the Canadian War Records Program, no formal art programs existed in DND for over two decades. The Canadian Armed Forces Civilian Artists Program (CAFCAP) was implemented in 1968. This program began to allow civilian participation, working alongside soldiers on duty domestically and internationally. This program was cancelled in 1995 due to a lack of funds.
The current Canadian Forces Artists Program began in June 2001; there have been over 40 civilian artists participating to date, deploying in locations as diverse as
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
, the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
,
Canadian Forces Station Alert and several bases and ships across Canada. There have been several exhibits staged, most recently the successful ongoing tour of the exhibition "Brush With War" which opened at the
Canadian War Museum
The Canadian War Museum (CWM) () is a National museums of Canada, national museum on the military history of Canada, country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military hist ...
on December 9, 2010. This exhibition brings together over 100 works created by artists involved in the various incarnations of the program from its inception to contemporary works as recent as 2008. Artists who have recently deployed under the auspices of the program include
Dick Averns and
Althea Thauberger
Althea Thauberger (born 1970, Saskatoon, Canada) is a Canadian visual artist, film maker and educator. Her work engages relational practices rooted in sustained collaborations with groups or communities through social, theatrical and textual proce ...
. Currently there are a number of artists slated for deployment in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
and other locales (
Sudan
Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
, the high
Arctic
The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...
) in 2011 including
Scott Waters and
Nicola Feldman-Kiss.
Competition
Since 2001 there have been four competitions, in 2-year intervals. The successful candidates are selected by a selection committee composed of leaders in the artistic community and national artistic and governmental institutions.
See also
*
Canadian official war artists Canadian official war artists create an artistic rendering of war through the media of visual, digital installations, film, poetry, choreography, music, etc., by showing its impact as men and women are shown waiting, preparing, fighting, suffering, ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Official site
Military of Canada