Artist’s Inspiration: Clive Lewis

We asked local artists to create works inspired by John McCrae’s In Flanders Fields for a special juried art show commemorating the centenary of the poem. The submissions we received were incredibly varied, as each artist brought a truly unique perspective to the poem. In this blog series, the artists explain in their own words what motivated their work. See more artist inspiration stories here.

Clive Lewis, “The Survivors”:

To me the poem conjures up visions of more than poppies and crosses. I envision the other casualties of war, of the long lines of refugees and of wounded soldiers returning to their homes. I see the shells of buildings and a landscape badly scarred.

My print was for ‘The Survivors’, for those people who, having survived, were now ready to move forward towards a sparse landscape but one with a promise of better things to come.

Clive Lewis is a printmaker, primarily involved in engravings, who lives in Guelph, Ontario. In the past, most of his work was landscape related – rural Ontario, Georgian Bay, and the North, principally. He finds himself turning towards more abstract work now. Visit his website: https://clivelewisprintmaker.com