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Private Bill Cameron could not know that enlisting in the Second World War would end with him shot through the back and left face down in the mud in France. He was just one of so many Canadian boys who volunteered to fight the Germans. For over a year he wrote home faithfully and those letters contain a detailed account of his experience overseas. In July 1944, the letters stopped.

Over the last 95 years, more than 200 artists have been charged with capturing the military history of our nation. With their brush stokes they recorded Vimy Ridge, the Somme, D-Day, Korea, Bosnia and Afghanistan to mention only a few. They sketched and painted amidst gunfire, explosions and death, and their work still has an immediacy that gets to the emotional root of war and conflict.

Doug Bradford is a barber. He has been cutting hair for 50 years in his hometown of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and in his spare time he paints. He never went to art school. His only teacher was his mother, who loved art and encouraged all six of her children to sketch and paint. She must have been remarkable, since two of them, Doug and his brother Kenneth, paint well enough to have their work collected by the Canadian War Museum.

Scott Waters has an unusual vantage point for an artist. Over the last two decades he has created a body of work that both supports and tears down the mythology of soldiering. For the three years before that, he lived it. Twenty-three years ago the artist served as an infantryman in the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI).

This August the weather in France is perfect—blue skies for photographs and moody clouds for paintings. I came to Europe to paint. World-class museums are filled with landscapes of the Norman and Flemish fields. This land is valuable both for its artistic and agricultural production. But it is cherished for another reason. This is where the world came to fight, not once but twice. More than 111,650 Canadians died as a result of the First and Second World Wars. They are buried here. As an artist, the juxtaposition of war and peace interests me. I imagine European citizens picnicking with their families on the same shores Canada stormed—busy with modern lives on old battlefields. I want to see if remembrance exists in the off-season—when no one knows company is coming.

This August the weather in France is perfect—blue skies for photographs and moody clouds for paintings. I came to Europe to paint. World-class museums are filled with landscapes of the Norman and Flemish fields. This land is valuable both for its artistic and agricultural production. But it is cherished for another reason. This is where the world came to fight, not once but twice. More than 111,650 Canadians died as a result of the First and Second World Wars. They are buried here. As an artist, the juxtaposition of war and peace interests me. I imagine European citizens picnicking with their families on the same shores Canada stormed—busy with modern lives on old battlefields. I want to see if remembrance exists in the off-season—when no one knows company is coming.

In 1985, on the 75th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Navy, Geoffrey Bagley donated 92 naval artworks to the Canadian War Museum, so in this the centennial year of the navy, it seems fitting to celebrate his contribution to Canada’s war art.

Every Canadian should have the opportunity to travel to Europe and walk in the footsteps of those who served in the First and Second World Wars. There, part of our history is somehow more tangible; it is found in the cemeteries and on the faces of the people who tend them and remember. For one lucky artist, that opportunity came her way as part of National Defence’s Canadian Forces Artists Program (CFAP). Karole Marois was chosen to paint the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands for CFAP. The impact of that trip was so deep that five years later she is doing it again—creating an even bigger and bolder series to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the liberation.

Karen Bailey is passionate about drawing attention to the uncelebrated workers in countless jobs across this land. When she was chosen in 2007 as part of the Canadian Forces Artists Program (CFAP) she carried her vision into the hospital at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan.

Brad White became the new Dominion Secretary for The Royal Canadian Legion on Sept. 12, 2009. White wants to increase the Legion’s relevancy and make the organization more active in all aspects, particularly in its service to veterans. White, a Canadian Forces veteran, is accustomed to the leadership role and is willing to take risks to get the job done. He has firmly positioned himself to fight the tough battles ahead—increasing membership, building unity and public awareness. Out of this, he believes, will emerge a more modern Legion, one that is even stronger in its ability to support veterans. The Dominion Secretary [...]