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In Cyprus: Landscapes of Peacekeeping

In Cyprus: Landscapes of Peacekeeping

Original Art Inspired by UNFICYP


The title of this exhibition was partially borrowed from Robert Shipley, one of the artists who travelled to the Mediterranean island to observe the Canadian presence during UNFICYP deployments. Featuring mainly landscapes, by Robert Shipley and other artists, this exhibition also brings forward some of the faces that lived and worked in Cyprus between 1966 and 1985, during rotations of SNOWGOOSE, as the operation was known by the Canadian military.

This exhibition was open to the public between 17 July and 22 September 2024 at The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum. Forty-four watercolors, drawings, cartoons, prints and black and white photographs were selected among the museum holdings, but also from the Beaverbrook Art Collection at the Canadian War Museum and the Archives and Special Collections at the University of Western Ontario; several private loans were added which allowed for the unveiling of art pieces previously unknown.

Physical layout

Physical layout

The physical layout can be seen in this video.

Untitled

 

Before smartphones and social media, human imaginary was equally fascinated by routine. Yet, routine was captured with different mediums and multifaceted skills. This exhibition verifies an argument in favour of a traditional approach, which accepts a more realistic taste for depicting the visible world. With an analog photographic camera, a pen or a brush, the artists may surprise their viewers with precision, spontaneous brush strokes, ultimately, the unexpected detail which helps identifying a specific narrative beyond the images on paper or canvas.

United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP)

The Security Council Resolution 186 established the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) on 4 March 1964. Over 25 000 Canadian military personnel rotated to the island until 1993 to assist in a mission known to them as Operation SNOWGOOSE. Generations of Canadian military escorted convoys while trying to prevent escalation of tensions into a conflict between Greek and Turk Cypriots. They served alongside other countries, performing duties mainly in Sector 4 or CANCON. UNFICYP is on-going, but The Royal Canadian Regiment (The RCR) ceased deployments in 1992. One year later, Canada drastically reduced participation to UNFICYP yet one staff officer continues to be deployed to this day to the General Headquarters.

United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP)

Not a Vacation

About challanges of deployements in Cyprus from a short clip produced by Allan Bonner Communications Management.

Not a Vacation
Patrolling the Green Line: Canadian Peacekeepers in Cyprus

Patrolling the Green Line: Canadian Peacekeepers in Cyprus

More on this UN mission from Historica Canada.

Original Art Inspired by UNFICYP (1966 to 1985)

In Cyprus, professional artists or serving members with artistic inclinations generated a sizeable production from which the pieces for this exhibition were selected. The original art and photography displayed here, were inspired or created during The RCR’s deployments under UNFICYP, from 1966 to 1984. It seems that inspiration have waned during the later rotations, in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Some of these pieces chosen are the work of individuals who travelled as part of the Canadian Armed Forces Civilian Artists Program (CAFCAP), a military art program running from 1968 to 1995. To paraphrase Dr. Laura Brandon, this program was built on the foundations of the military art produced during the First and Second World Wars; it opened a door to the expression of individual artistic flair while developing a “documentary” production.

Other works on show are the creation of media experts, photo reporters or illustrators visiting battalions of The RCR deployed in Cyprus. Specific events or simple curiosity for the island became as many occasions to explore the landscape, the people, and the light under the Mediterranean sky.

Even members of The RCR abandoned themselves to the charm of the sights; the result was meritorious, raising up to or exceeding the standards of virtuoso draftsmen. 

Artists

Rupert Samuelson

Rupert Samuelson was an officer in the Grenadier Guards, a British Army regiment. By 1966 he was retired and lived in Kyrenia, hosting bridge games to which Canadian officers were invited. His hobby was painting and in early 1967, an exhibition featuring his landscapes opened in the city.

Peter Roman Spuzak

(born in 1948)

Spuzak is a native of Fort Frances, ON. An artist and farmer, Spuzak always showed an interest in the community of Rainy River District, serving as president of the Fort Frances Arts and Crafts Association for 25 years, amongst other public commitments.

On 25 August 1970, he arrived in Nicosia as a CAFCAP. Spuzak used pencil and watercolour to sketch the Cypriot landscape on the Green Line or in Nicosia. With spontaneous brush strokes and bright tones of yellow, green and blue, he captured the arid scenery in which the UN, Greek or Turkish flags can be spotted. The architectural heritage and views of the harbours seem to have also attracted Spuzak’s interest. An art show assembling his work in Cyprus was improvised at the Pro Patria Club, the Junior Ranks Mess situated in Ledra Palace Hotel; a black and white photography from our collection preserves the layout of this exhibition and possibly the artist’s profile.

In 2006, he was running for a Councillor position in the Town of Fort Frances, ON, where he continues to live.

Reproduction of a black and white photograph depicting Spuzak art show at Pro Patria Club, ca. 1970.
Reproduction of a black and white photograph depicting Spuzak art show at Pro Patria Club, ca. 1970.

John R. Robbins

(1929 – 1993)

Graphic artist, draftsman, cartoonist, John Robbins was also a Corporal, serving in the Korean War.

In 1970, he was deployed with 1RCR in Cyprus, as a member of the Intelligence Office. While on tour, his contribution extended past service requirements; he actively sketched places and sights on the Green Line, two of which were identified in the Beaverbrook Art Collection, Canadian War Museum collection; a third drawing is in the RCRM holdings.

From the Blue Beret Magazine
From the Blue Beret Magazine

George K. Johnston

 

Le caporal George Johnston s’enrôla dans le Service de renseignement du 1er bataillon, le RCR, en janvier 1969. Ses tâches comprenaient la préparation de « cartes, graphiques et reports », à l’en croire à la publication régimentaire.

Une année plus tard, Johnston fut déployé à Chypre avec tout le bataillon, où il dessina des vues des postes d’observations et d’autres endroits à Nicosie et dans les alentours. Selon la même source, Johnston fit retour à la « vie de civil » en 1973. Deux des croquis que Johnston dessina en 1970 se trouvent aujourd’hui dans la collection du Musée canadien de la guerre.

From the Blue Beret Magazine
From the Blue Beret Magazine

Merle Tingley (Ting)

(1921 – 2017)

Merle Tingley or “Ting” was a Canadian cartoonist who worked for the London Free Press (LFP) between 1948 and 1986. He received the National Newspaper Award in 1995, and was inducted in the Canadian Cartoonist Hall of Fame in 2015. During the Second World War, Merle Tingley worked for the Khaki and the Maple Leaf, both Canadian Army publications.

In 1964, he travelled to Cyprus, probably for the first time. It was the beginning of UNFICYP, with SNOWGOOSE 1, and Ting reported the “explosive situation” in several articles published in early April of that year, each accompanied by an assertive, yet humoristic cartoon which conveys in a sharp manner the actual the situation.

In 1975, Ting returned to Cyprus with a group of reporters who were visiting 1RCR. At the time, this unit was part of Canadian Forces Base London, the prominent military establishment in the region. Between May 3rd and May 10th 1975, LFP published a total of six cartoons, and a composite illustration gathering “Londoners of the Peace Front”, all by Ting. Some were surrounded by editorials, others were printed as independent images, all powerful visual commentaries to the political situation on the island of Cyprus, and the ensuing conflict.

Self-Caricature, Courtesy Western Archives, Western University, London, Canada
Self-Caricature, Courtesy Western Archives, Western University, London, Canada

The Life of Merle "Ting" Tingley

The Life of Merle "Ting" Tingley

William (Bill) Sandford

(born in 1947)


Bill Sandford had a long and successful career as a photojournalist, acknowledged by multiple awards, including the National Newspaper. He was on staff or worked for the Toronto Sun, the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail and other newspapers in southwestern and central Ontario. 

Bill Sandford went to Cyprus in 1975, with a group of journalists from southwestern Ontario. They travelled for news coverage after 1RCR suffered causalities during their UNFICYP rotation in 1974-1975. During this trip, Sandford took several photographs of the region, places and people. One of them accompanied the editorial he signed on 15 May 1975 in the Etobicoke Gazette.

The set of photographs from Cyprus was spotlighted again in 2007, in an exhibition at The MacLaren Art Centre in Barrie, ON. After moving to London in 2011, Bill Sandford donated the photographs to the RCRM.

From Etobicoke Gazette
From Etobicoke Gazette

William (Bill) James Johnson

(1927 – 2012)

Windsor-born, Bill Johnson served in the Royal Canadian Air Force until 1963. Upon retirement, he moved with his family to London, ON, and trained to become initially a teacher, then an artist. Some of his outstanding portraits are held in art galleries and private collections across the country.

According to former members of The RCR, Johnson travelled to Cyprus numerous times, but not all trips are well documented. He may have toured the island for the first time in 1975, with the same group of news reporters as Ting or Bill Sandford did. It is nevertheless certain that in 1977, he visited 3RCR in Cyprus, with a grant from the Canadian Armed Forces Civilian Artists Program. On 7 February 1977, the UNFICYP weekly Blue Berret Magazine, mentioned Johnson’s visit. It seems that he was interested by “scenes in the buffer zone, faces and surroundings” with the hope of giving everyone “some lasting memories” of the tour. He portrayed many of the serving members he met while in Cyprus, but his observation of local physiognomies proves yet again a high interest in exploring of human expression. With pen, pencil or oil, men and women are seen from the most unexpected angles, sometimes while conducting some of their choice activities.

Painting OP Orchard; photo, RCRM Collection.
Painting OP Orchard; photo, RCRM Collection.

Robert Shipley

(born in 1948)

After serving four years in the Armed Forces, Shipley set out as a freelance writer and artist. In 1978, he was invited to Cyprus to capture some of the 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise) Regiment’s activities for the historical record. “A” Company 1RCR was deployed at the same time and the artist used his sketchpad to draft views of the places in the Canadian area of operations. The result was a series of pen and ink sketches, plus several watercolours, which for the artist represent Landscapes of Peacekeeping; this artistic production is shared between the Beaverbrook Art Collection, Canadian War Museum, the 8th Canadian Hussars Regimental Association, and The Royal Canadian Regiment Museum in London, Ontario. The Landscapes of Peacekeeping were re-visited in 2022; the artist graciously agreed with the temporary loan of three colorized sketches.

In 1987, Robert Shipley produced another remarkable work, To Mark Our Place. A study of war commemoration across the country, this was possible with support from a grant from Canada Council.

Currently, Dr. Robert Shipley holds an Associate Professorship at the University of Waterloo’s School of Planning, is a Research Fellow of Oxford Brookes University in England and is the Chair of the Heritage Resource Centre at Waterloo.

The artist in Cyprus, 2022; artist's photo.
The artist in Cyprus, 2022; artist's photo.

Bernie Viscount

A member of the Intelligence Platoon during 1RCR’s SNOWGOOSE rotation 42, (1984 – 1985), Master Corporal Bernie Viscount was requested to sketch portraits of the officers on tour. With humour, and a firm pen, he draws faces linked to the specific interest of the individual. The effort resulted in a composite print, a Cyprus end-of-tour surprise for all who are represented.

“Wolseley Barracks” Ops Info & Joint Ops Centre, Nicosia

Kyrenia – Nicosia

The 1st Battalion, The RCR (1RCR), deployed to Cyprus starting in 1966. At the time, headquarters were situated in Kyrenia, a harbour city founded in ancient times, but occupied successively by Greeks, Byzantines, Venetians, Ottomans, and British. After Cyprus became independent from the British rule, Kyrenia was inhabited in majority by Greeks, and only 25% Turks. Canadian military patrolled and watched the mountain area between the two cities. After 1974, when Greeks were forced to flee Kyrenia while Turkish Cypriots displaced from elsewhere on the island moved in, Canadian troops established quarters south, in the capital city Nicosia. With an extended buffer zone, Canadians were assigned the so-called Sector 4 or CANCON (another acronym for the Canadian Contingent), stretching south-east of the capital city to Lourougina pocket. In Nicosia, Ledra Palace Hotel, once a lavish tourist destination, offered lodgings to officers and non-commissioned officers for many years; Sector 4 Headquarters were eventually known as “Wolseley Barracks” after The RCR’s home station in London, ON.

The Green Line

The Green Line

Crossing the capital city Nicosia and stretching over 300 km from east to west of Cyprus, the Green Line is a demilitarized zone patrolled by UNFICYP. It delineates the authorities of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots since 1963, when only 180 km were covered. After the Turkish invasion in August 1974, the Green Line expanded to today’s length. Forces of the participant countries rotated periodically (and continue to do so) in order to monitor this buffer zone thus ensuring stability on an island inhabited by nationals of two NATO member-countries: Turkey and Greece.

OP School

Observation Posts

At the end of 1966, an eye-witness described the overall situation in Cyprus as quiet, but “no matter how quiet it may seem, each day poses a new problem; the task here […] requiring twenty-four-hour vigilance and patience.” This task was performed in strategic locations established along the Green Line, some inside the cities, others in the arid countryside. They are more commonly referred to as “OPs”, an abbreviation for “Observation Post”, or as an editorialist from the London Free Press described them, “code-named of plywood and sandbags in no man’s land.” Until 1993, when Canadian government drastically reduced the contribution to UNFICYP, The RCR battalions observed patiently from the OPs situated in Sector 4.

1RCR Officers Cartoon

People

Artists who favoured the portrait genre took an equal interest in exploring the physiognomy of locals and of UNFICYP members. The interaction of the military with Greek or Turk Cypriots did not escape the sharp eye of the photographer who captured lively conversations with his camera. Artists portrayed not only faces, but also connected these faces to interests or occupations of choice. Cartoonists rendered with humour the profile of men on duty.

Acknowledgements

In addition to the artworks and artefacts from the RCRM collection, many pieces in this exhibition are on loan from various sources whom we wish to acknowledge here: the Beaverbrook Art Collection, Canadian War Museum, Archives and Special Collections at the University of Western Ontario, artist Robert Shipley, and other private collections mentioned on the legends accompanying each piece.

The research for this exhibition was possible with support from London Room at London Public Library, Local History Room at Richview Branch, Toronto Public Library, and the Legion Magazine. The Regimental Headquarters, The RCR, Petawawa Military Museums, and Museum London helped by searching their holdings to ensure that no stone was left unturned. The Art Bank, Stevens E3, CANADIGM, Obre Projects, STQRY, Studio Mondu, Astley Gilbert, Signature Graphics, and Total Fine Arts made an essential contribution to the logistics of this exhibition.

We also wish to acknowledge the support of several individuals who promptly answered our questions or requests while trying to assemble a puzzle with many missing pieces. In no specific order, they are: Major General (retired) Frank Norman, Brigadier General (retired) Philip Spencer, Colonel (retired) Joseph Aitchison, Colonel (retired) Robert Elms, Major Matthew Coughlin, Captain Scott Robinson, Captain (retired) Roy Goldik, Captain (retired) Ray Fleming, Captain (retired) Michael O’Leary, Chief Warrant Officer (retired) Don Reily, Master Corporal (retired) Richard Howard, Dr. Robert Shipley, Cameron Tingley, Jocelyn Brooke, August Macdonnell, Theresa Regnier, Amanda Jamieson, Annika Lauffer, Nathan Larsen, Alanna Rayner, Lauren Millett, Margaret Fraser, Ben Fuller, Amber Lloydlangston, Cassandra Getty, Marylin Murray, Bill Sandford, Zenon Andruszynzyn, Ray Fair, Mike Brown, Paul Culliton, Petru-Ioan Obreja, Cosmo Tancredi, Kerry Loudoun, Sarah Coates, Kenna Robinson, Beth Spitzig, Ben Norton, Kristin Knoll, Bill Majovsky, Marley Vance, Paul Meath, Kyoko Baba, Micca Kendrick, Jelyn Nikka Deang, Stephen Thomas, Dave Beattie, James Wolfe, Rafal Kowolski, Justin Scrimshaw, Melanie Peters, Rachel Swift.