Marine Corps Art Symposium

TRIANGLE, VA, UNITED STATES

11.15.2021

Story by Cpl. AaRron Smith 

Marine Corps Base Quantico

The National Museum of the Marine Corps held its third annual Combat Art Symposium to showcase the artwork and artists who have contributed to the museum’s Combat Art selection. The symposium, held from November 4-6, gave each artist an opportunity to share their stories and passion projects with the public.
According to Kristopher Battles, the Marine Corps artist in residence, the event allows the NMMC to work with combat artists and curators from across the Department of Defense.
“The significance of why this event took place, is that we were able to join with combat artists and curators from the various DOD branches, invigorate our programs, explore artistic best practices, and share experiences and artwork,” he said.
"Our art is meant to be portrayed as the facts of war filtered through our perspective as we find the beauty in the reality of war,” he explained. “It’s important to understand that the Combat Artist isn’t glorifying war itself, nor is the art considered propaganda.
To help with this distinction, several artists affiliated with the museum discussed the origins of their art and its creation. Mary Whyte, an internationally recognized watercolor artist, gave her presentation on her collection, ‘We the People,’ displayed throughout the Combat Art Gallery located on the second floor of the museum. The collection features watercolor paintings of 50 veterans from all services who have gone on to live their own respective lives outside of the military. Whyte was inspired to share their stories of service. She travelled across the country for seven years meeting many of the men and women who served in the Armed Forces, painting their portraits along the way. These intricately detailed watercolors are now the heart of the “We the People” collection.
“The greatest contributors to our country are our veterans,” Whyte said. “‘We the People,’ gives expression to what is meaningful to us and a way to relay it to the public.”
Although Whyte has not been in a combat zone, she is able to use her talent for realism painting to translate the experiences from those who have. The combat artist, as described by Battles, is a risk taker for craft and country, and with their efforts, give the American people the news of their heroes.
Combat Art became a part of the Marine Corps shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor 1942 when there appeared to be a lack of news coverage on the heroism of Marines during the battle of Wake Island. The Marine Corps decided to have Marines capture images from combat zones alongside civilian reporters. The news media recovered from these combat areas and its actions were reported to the American people directly from the Combat Artist. The initiative was led by Brigadier General, Robert Denig, a decorated World War l veteran, who was called from retirement to organize and lead the Corps’ first Department of Public Relations, which is now Communication Strategy and Operations.

• Date Taken: 11.15.2021
• Date Posted: 11.29.2021 12:23
• Story ID: 409354
• Location: TRIANGLE, VA, US