Douglas Farthing

Sergeant Major Douglas Farthing is no ordinary soldier. Out in the field, alongside his military equipment, Sgt Maj Farthing is also armed with a sketchbook, paints and brushes. With more than 20 years of service - firstly in the Parachute Regiment and now with the Royal Anglians of the Territorial Army - Sgt Maj Farthing has drawn on considerable experience to depict his more recent deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and to show the world the reality of war from the soldier’s perspective.

Douglas Farthing Artist Statement:

I am inspired by all that I see, in particular the beauty within hardship, I record war and the effects of war in Art. The landscape, people, equipment and soldiers the emotions and the reality of a life. Soldiers find themselves in a testing and exciting environment. I find it rewarding to draw the viewer into the situation, young men and women from both sides - the armies and civilian populations. I feel great pleasure when, in my work, someone recognises a moment they have experienced in their own life.

Douglas Farthing has an exhibition on display at The National Memorial Arboretum. The exhibition continuies until the 29th of Feb 2012

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