George Edmund Butler

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George Edmund Butler in 1932

George Edmund Butler (born January 15, 1872 in Southampton , England , † August 9, 1936 in Twickenham , England) was an English artist who made a name for himself as a war painter at the time of the First World War - especially in his adopted home New Zealand . Along with Horace Millichamp Moore-Jones and Nugent Welch, he is one of the most important artists in New Zealand at the time of the First World War.

Life

George Edmund Butler: Full marching kit , 1918

Born in the southern English coastal town of Southampton, George Edmund Butler immigrated to New Zealand at the age of eleven, together with his parents Joseph Cawte Butler and Jane Tiller. The family settled in the capital, Wellington , where Butler also spent most of his youth. The Englishman started his artistic career at Wellington Technical College , as a student of the famous New Zealand painter James Nairn .

After Butler traveled to the National Art Gallery in Sydney with the art dealer McGregor Wright in 1897 , he decided to dedicate his life even more intensively to art. Two years later, he moved back to his original homeland, England, in order to deepen his studies at the Lambeth School in London and then continue his studies in Paris at the Académie Julian . On April 29, 1899, he married his first wife, Sarah Jane Popplestone, in Lyndhurst , Hampshire . Two children result from the common marriage.

His stay in Europe was crowned by a gold medal, which he received from the Art Academy in Antwerp for his painterly achievements. The previous year, the English artist George Clausen received this award.

Artistic creation

In 1900, Butler returned to New Zealand after spending two years in Europe and completing a degree. Thanks to the reputation he gained in the course of his award in Belgium , he was allowed to exhibit his works in the country's most important galleries. He was hailed as an emerging artist, but still made no financial gain. Instead, he tried to keep himself afloat with smaller jobs and drawing courses. In the hope of greater success, the now 33-year-old painter decided to return to Europe again in 1905.

Career as a war painter

Back in Europe, Butler began to teach at the college in Bristol and to develop an excellent reputation as a portrait and landscape painter . In contrast to his home in New Zealand, he was successful there. His works have been shown in renowned galleries such as London and Paris. In addition to numerous other commissions, Butler received an inquiry from the newly founded New Zealand Expeditionary Force War Museum Committee ( NZEF War Museum Committee) in 1918 - shortly before the end of the First World War - which wanted to hire him as a war painter for New Zealand. He immediately accepted the order and accompanied the New Zealand soldiers on the French and Belgian fronts until the end of the war. Between September and November 1918, he made 53 drawings and portraits alone - he also accepted private inquiries from various officers.

New Zealand's participation in the First World War

New Zealand soldiers during the First World War

Although the First World War was largely fought in Central Europe, many different nations around the world were involved - including New Zealand. At the beginning of the war in 1914, the country had more than a million inhabitants, more than 18,000 soldiers died, and almost 60,000 people returned to their home country badly wounded. Overall, every tenth inhabitant served in war in Europe. The stationings were mainly in England, France or Belgium.

death

After George Edmund Butler left New Zealand one more time to start a new life in England, he died in London in 1936 without ever visiting New Zealand again. He left behind his two children, his second wife, whom he married in 1929 - a year after the death of his first wife.

Works

More than 100 of his works are in the New Zealand Martial Arts Archives. Butler is considered New Zealand's most successful war painter. His career began early, at the age of 20 he became well known in New Zealand's art scene with his landscape paintings.

His reputation, which he achieved with the help of his oil and watercolor paintings, ultimately helped him to get his commission as a war painter during his second - and last - stay in Europe. What is particularly astonishing is that Butler had never served as a soldier before. He experienced the war through the eyes of a normal citizen, who for the first time saw all the suffering and misery up close. This position helped him to observe the war from a certain intellectual distance and to sketch it out relatively impartially. With the help of his pictures he wanted to give New Zealand citizens a glimpse of the war that was being fought far away from their homeland. His aim was to give the tragic scenes and especially his soldiers dignity and respect.

  • Landscapes and war scenarios

  • 'The Battle of Polygon Wood

  • A barrage, Caudry, 2nd Otago attacking

  • A roadside cemetery near Neuve Eglise

  • Bellevue Ridge

  • Messines Ridge from Hill 63

  • Outside Lesdain, 1918

  • Stretcher party

  • The Butte, Polygon Wood

  • The fight at the quarry outside Bapaume

  • Capture of the walls of Le Quesnoy, 1920

literature

Web links

Commons : George Edmund Butler  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

credentials

  1. ↑ Kiwi war artists , nzhistory.govt.nz, accessed on January 27, 2018.
  2. ↑ a b c d George Edmund Butler - Biography , teara.govt.nz, accessed January 13, 2018.
  3. ↑ a b Mr. George E. Butler. In: Evening Post. Volume 122, Number 81, October 2, 1936, accessed January 27, 2018.
  4. ↑ a b George Edmund Butler (1872–1936) , warart.archives.govt.nz, accessed on January 27, 2018.
  5. ↑ a b George Butler. Biography , nzhistory.govt.nz, accessed January 27, 2018.
  6. ↑ Commemoration of the First World War ( Memento of the original from March 3, 2018 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , wellington.diplo.de, accessed on January 27, 2018. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.wellington.diplo.de
  7. ^ Discover the Western Front , ngatapuwae.govt.nz, accessed January 27, 2018.
personal data
SURNAME Butler, George Edmund
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English painter and war painter
DATE OF BIRTH January 15, 1872
PLACE OF BIRTH Southampton , England
DATE OF DEATH August 9, 1936
Place of death Twickenham , England