Walter Seymour Allward, the sculptor of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial, was all ready famous when his design was picked for the Vimy construction. This project took fourteen years from his start to unveiling, 1921-1936. When I stand on the path leading to the monument I am struck by the whiteness of the stone. It gleams, even on the days when the skies are grey. The process of selecting the stone took Allward two years of travel. It was obviously an undertaking of great passion. The stone he selected comes from an old Roman quarry in Croatia, at Seget. I wonder at that task – quarrying and then transporting the stone to France for the stone carvers to transform it into this massive work of art. My first experience standing at Vimy, made me recall back the narrative in the novel by Jane Urquhart, The Stone Carvers. She explores the power of art to transform lives and loss and Allward’s commitment to complete this monumental work of art. I can hear the sound of the chisels of stonemasons ringing around me as I gaze upon the twenty faces of the monument’s human figures and the 11,000 names of fallen Canadians engraved on this luminous limestone.
30 Days to Vimy 100
It's one month ahead of the ceremony until our Fields Of Fire Tours group of 200 stands together at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial. This group comprises gunners and signallers from across Canada - Regular Army and Reservists, serving and retired, and many spouses and partners too. The serving soldiers were selected by their units to represent them at this centenary commemoration. Our Vimy 100 tickets have arrived allowing us access to this special event. All that's left to do is pack and hope for good weather. We will blog regularly to share our experiences as the tour unfolds.
1 of the 50,000 tickets distributed to Canadians to attend the Canadian National Memorial Commemoration Ceremony on April 9th, 2017.