Joanne Tod is represented in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Musée d’Art contemporain de Montréal.

Kathleen AllenJune 18, 2011 21:20 EST

Nice portraits.
I just watched John Pilger's doc "The War You Don't See". Lots of pictures of dead Afghanistan civilians. How about painting the victims of "our" guys? The have faces too, But they weren't armed like our guys were. Just innocent people bombed, occupied and ignored by the media and by we, the Canadian people and their artists.

A pox on you.

Chris K.June 20, 2011 06:01 EST

Kathleen, that is an absolutely disgusting comment.

How dare you show such disrespect to our war dead.

Ingrid WalkerJune 20, 2011 06:01 EST

Madam,

While I understand and commend your desire to see the victims of both sides of this war recognized, I find it churlish of you to wish "a pox" on someone who was simply trying to pay homage to the men and women who have died while serving in the Forces in Afghanistan. What an artist chooses to render is their own choice. Perhaps, instead of vilifying the artist, you could instead choose to cast your scathing indictment on a more appropriate target. There are many out there, all ripe for the choosing.

Cursing someone for their art, when it is the politics of the situation that created a subject for their art that you have a problem with, is somewhat disingenuous.

Ted K.June 20, 2011 07:55 EST

Kathleen, you have my pity. I cannot even say a pox on you. That would be insulting to pox everywhere.

AnonymousJune 21, 2011 05:32 EST

Kristal's unit was 1 Canadian Field Hospital (Petawawa) and not 1 Field Ambulance (Edmonton). I am not sure that sketching a military-released photograph is really painting portraits. Doesn't an artist attempt get to know the subject when painting a true portrait?

MaryJune 21, 2011 13:05 EST

Very good portraits, Mr. Glyn Barry is the most realistic, I think.

MaggieJune 28, 2011 12:19 EST

Kathleen - do you know who else isn't pictured here? The families of each and every one of these soldiers, people who lost someone dear to them in a horrific way. You imply that you care about the human face of war, the people affected, but I hardly think that's true. Your comment was disrespectful to the dead and those who cared about them. Your opinions on the war, on what we do over there, they don't belong here. Right or wrong, these people died during war and whether you agree with said war or not, they deserve respect.
Don't lay your plithy comments and politicized anger at the feet of these men or the artist. What the artist has done is paid homage to dead men and women, and the people who will remember them.

This is a stunning, poignantly honest work and I am glad to see the Walrus showcase it.

Vanessa A.July 03, 2011 18:17 EST

A friend of mine, Shane Keating, is portrayed here along with his friend Keith Morley. A couple of weeks before Shane died, he called me and said that for the first time while on tour, he was scared. I naively told him to hide somewhere on the base until it was all over... clearly, he didn't hide from his duties and the war wouldn't be over until many, many more lives were lost.

Recently, I went to my local bookstore (McNally Robinson in Winnipeg) and reviewed this article in print. Unfortunately, the print edition does not have the correct names under Shane Keating's or Keith Morley's portraits (see page 37 of the Walrus July/August 2011 issue).

If there are any steps you can take to correct this mistake and make sure no others were made, I beg you to please take them. Thank you.

The WalrusJuly 04, 2011 11:02 EST

Dear Vanessa,

Thanks for your note. We deeply regret the error, which has been corrected in the online version of this gallery, and will be printing a correction note in our next print issue as well.

Sincerely,

The Walrus

MemoriesOfFallenJuly 07, 2011 11:50 EST

We Thank them for their ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom!

We will remember them!

tortilJuly 13, 2011 11:37 EST

Don't curse "our" guys, their grieving families, or the artists who honour them. If you must wish poxes on people, curse the politicians who sent our soldiers into Afghanistan in the first place. Where was your pox ten years ago, when the decision was made?

Many Afghan civilians were killed by their own countrymen - armed civilians, seeking as many casualties as possible. Our guys were not killed by enemy soldiers. They were killed by armed civilians too.

It takes a lot of courage to face a battle like that. Shane Keating, Keith Morley, Glen Arnold, and David Byers had the courage and lost their lives.
This artist took three years to paint a copy of their official army photographs, and didn't bother to take 5 minutes to make sure she got their names right. Why bother?

The WalrusJuly 13, 2011 11:44 EST

Dear Tortil,

The naming errors happened during production of our July/August 2011 issue. The mistakes are ours, not the artist's. We will be printing a formal correction notice in our September 2011 issue.

Sincerely,

The Walrus

Lorenzo ClarkeJuly 25, 2011 18:56 EST

This post is directed to Kathleen ~your comments are a disgrace to the men and woman of CANADA and GB~USA and other countrys who have given their lives so you can live in FREEDOOM ~maybe you forgot what happened on 9/11 in New York ~or maybe you would like to go and live in Afganstan where women are treated like dirt~and school teachers are killed simply for teaching kids,So Kathleen Dont forget the innocent People who were BOMBED on 9/11.

Patricia Bray RopohlSeptember 28, 2011 09:24 EST

Joanne Todd has done an amazingly beautiful, sensitive and personal homage to these men & women of the Canadian Forces. And no, you don't have to know the subject to paint a portrait.
With each painting, she was able to connect and render a wonderful acknowledgement to someone she had never pet.

Geoff HillierNovember 10, 2011 09:14 EST

Some time has passed since the last comment (Ropohl) but I must tell you that having discovered the article recently (at the doctor\\\\\\\'s office!) I was very moved. Councillor Kenny Podmore (Sidney, BC) has each year placed a cross for each of the fallen Canadians of the Afghan conflict in front of Sgt. Patrick Towers Plaque on the Sidney Waterfront lest they be forgotten.
Many Canadians have relatives and friends who have served with the Canadian Forces, and given their lives, so that the world may ultimately be a better place for all peoples. As Canadians we should be proud of their service to humanity and the international reverence that they have provided for Canada through their efforts.

Mike BennettDecember 16, 2011 13:34 EST

What a fantastic tribute to OUR Fallen! Thanks for sharing this site.

AnonymousMarch 03, 2012 14:17 EST

March 2nd 2012.Those of you that write anything negative about these portraits should truly get a slap. Give your silly little heads a shake & remember why YOU are still here. We had soldiers that have lost their lives for you to have one. Oh... Kethleen by the way look up the word RESPECT I don't think you quite get what it means.... However you can't be that dumb since you know the meaning of DISRESPECT.

MadelieneJune 20, 2012 11:23 EST

Thank you to Joanne Tod for the very poignant, thoughtful, respectful tribute to the Canadian heroes who have lost their lives in the conflict in Afghanistan. The portraits were beautifully rendered and help viewers and readers to honor those who sacrificed their lives, paying the ultimate price to restore civil society, which many of our entitled, privileged citizens take for granted from their comfy armchairs. Bravo!

Airborne1August 26, 2012 20:54 EST

Vraiment bien cette représentation, je vous en remerci les souvenirs ne meurt jamais. Je m'en souviens 3r22r.