Edward "Ted" Fenwick Zuber

Edward (Ted) Fenwick Zuber is a professional artist known for his work as a War Artist for the Canadian government. He was born in 1932 in Montreal, Quebec. He first studied art at the École des Beaux-Arts de Montreal, attended Queen's University (fine arts) and apprenticed to the religious painter Matthew Martirano.

Korean War Experience

At the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, Zuber enlisted and became a parachutist with the 1st Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment. With the Battalion's mission to Korea in 1952, he first saw action on 187 as "I" Rep to D coy. The unit's next front line position, 355 or "Little Gibraltar" required an additional rifle company, and Zuber was transferred to this new "E" Coy as a Bren Gunner. The winter saw him back with H. Q. Company, this time as a sniper up on the "Hook" position. It was here that he suffered a grenade wound after which he was evacuated to the Norwegian M.A.S.H. and the 25th Canadian Field Hospital.

Throughout his experience on the Korean Front, Zuber carried a sketch book to record the action around him. During this time he produced many drawings and maintained a detailed "Sketch diary". These pictorial records of Canada's Korean involvement are particularly valuable historically, because there was no official war artist assigned to Canada's Korean involvement. Thirteen paintings from Zuber's "Korean War Series" are now in the collections of the Canadian War Museum. Ted is also the subject of the short documentary Art of War, chronicling his experiences and inspiration during the first Persian Gulf war.

Gulf War - Operation Friction

When Operation Friction, known internationally as the Gulf War or Operation Desert Storm began Zuber was selected from among a field of over 30 applicants, the Canadian Armed Forces Civilian Artists Program (CAFCAP) to travel to Qatar with the Canadian Armed Forces to capture the images and experiences of Canadian Service Men and Women. Rikki Cameron, Curator of Art at the Canadian War Museum says of Zuber "Mr. Zuber has an international reputation for his war art, particularly for his depictions of Canadian participation in the Korean War."

Zuber served in the Gulf War Theatre from 21 January to 3 March 1991 as Canada's Official War Artist. Temporarily commissioned in the rank of Captain, he was contracted under the CAFCAP to record the life and activities of Canadian Forces personnel in Operation Friction. His contract with DND, sponsored under the CAFCAP called for 10 sketches to be produced, he brought back 120 of them and six small paintings that he completed after one month in the active duty area. The six field paintings were purchased outright and Zuber was commissioned to do four finished paintings, one each to depict the activities of the Army, Navy, Air Force and 1 Canadian Field Hospital. "That's when work really began," Zuber says. "How was I to tell the whole story in only four pictures? Doing 400 would almost have been easier". Ms. Cameron has gone on to say "I think Mr. Zuber is like a number of Canadian artists, he is better known outside of Canada than he is here."

Zuber, like those artists who served in earlier CAFCAP assignments, acted much like a war correspondent, incorporating into his art the feeling of the events around him as photography alone cannot accomplish. His endurance of the heat and dangers of the war zone have left a commemorative historic record of the men and women of the Canadian Forces who served in the Gulf.

On December 17, 1991 Zuber was awarded the Kuwait and Gulf medal by Chief of the Defense Staff, General John de Chastelain. He was also awarded the Korean Medal on November 11, 1991 together with the other Canadians who served in Korea. Zuber is the only Canadian service man or woman to have both the Korean War medal and the Gulf War medal.

Post War Experience

Since the completion of Zuber's service to his country the majority of his time is spent capturing the images and life near his studio outside of Seeley's Bay, Ontario. Although he continues to occasionally excise the demons of his past the majority of his work today portrays gentler themes. Landscapes provide a special passion for Zuber and in winter themes especially Zuber finds quiet solitude. His winter landscapes are especially telling both as uniquely Canadian and as images that tell their own stories through the detail and emotion. From the almost surreal experience of Strangers Passing, which captures the sunset lit clouds over the lake behind his studio, to Seeley's Bay that could be any small town in Canada with a gas station, grocery store and town hall, each landscape tells its own special story.

External links

* [http://collections.civilization.ca/public/pages/cmccpublic/emupublic/ResultsList.php?QueryName=CmccPublicCustomQueryForm&QueryPage=%2Fpublic%2Fpages%2Fcmccpublic%2Femupublic%2FQuery.php&lang=0&Any=AdmWebMetadata&Object=ObjectNameType&People=NameFields&Places=UsedLocation&Events=EventsSummary&Military=MilitaryService&ObjNumber=NumArtifactNo&SearchWord=zuber&QueryOption=Any&QueryWord=all&QueryInstituition=Canadian+Museum+of+Civilization+and+Canadian+War+Museum&Submit=Search+the+Collection&StartAt=1 Zuber Collection on Civilization.ca]
* [http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/northkorea/koreanwar.html CBC News North Korea The Forgotten War]
* [http://www.zuberfineart.com Ted Zuber's web site]