A year after the city was devastated by the Halifax Explosion, Harold Gilman (British, 1876-1919) and Arthur Lismer (Canadian, 1885-1969) were working in Halifax as war artists. Both commissioned by the Canadian War Memorials Fund to record the war activity on the home front, the two men struck up a friendship and worked side-by-side on occasion. With the effects of the explosion still clearly visible, Gilman and Lismer turned their attention to the bustling harbour. Produced in conjunction with the ''Halifax Harbour 1918'' exhibition, this compelling book traces the artists'' meticulous approach to their mission, the challenges of working during the aftermath of the tragedy and their role during a critical moment in the history of Canadian landscape painting. Exhibition: National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Canada (12.10.2018 - 17.03.2019) / Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Canada (12.04. - 02.09.2019).

Two wartime artists, one bustling harbour, and a city ravaged by the Halifax Explosion. Two perspectives on Halifax one year after the Explosion. A year after the city was devastated by the Halifax Explosion Harold Gilman (British, 1876–1919) and Arthur Lismer (Canadian, 1885–1969) were working in Halifax as war artists. Both commissioned by the Canadian War Memorials Fund to record the war activity on the home front, the two men struck up a friendship and worked side-by-side on occasion. Gilman seemed to wipe clean the desolation of the Explosion, ignoring the site of a human-made catastrophe in favour of a glowing landscape. In contrast, Lismer, a member of the Group of Seven, recorded the port’s activity up close, producing a series of drawings and paintings of camouflaged battleships embedded in the Maritime landscape. With more than 30 reproductions and essays by Anabelle Kienle Ponka, Lily Foster, and Sarah Fillmore, Halifax Harbour 1918 traces the artists’ meticulous approach to their mission and their role during a critical moment in the history of Canadian landscape painting. Deux artistes en temps de guerre, un port animé et une ville ravagée par l'explosion d'Halifax. Deux perspectives d’Halifax un an après l'explosion. En juin 1918, l’artiste Arthur Lismer (1885–1969) accepte une commande du Fonds de souvenirs de guerre canadiens (le Fonds) et se rend à Halifax pour documenter l’effort de guerre sur le front canadien et représenter le port de cette ville à la suite de l’explosion d’origine humaine la plus meurtrière à survenir avant l’apparition des armes nucléaires. De son côté Harold Gilman (1876–1919), grande figure du groupe londonien Camden Town Group et seul artiste de guerre britannique envoyé au Canada, est chargé par le Fonds de peindre un grand tableau du port de Halifax pendant la guerre. Avec plus de 30 reproductions et essais d’Anabelle Kienle Ponka, Lily Foster, et Sarah Fillmore, le port d’Halifax 1918 retracent l'approche méticuleuse des artistes à leur mission, les défis de travailler au lendemain de la tragédie et leur rôle au cours d'une moment dans l'histoire de la peinture de paysage canadienne.