Lest We Forget/Stuffed
Maker
Donna Sarten
Production date
2004
Description
This photographic installation depicts the ‘mounted’ heads of five men – each representing a private who served in the New Zealand forces during WW1 and who were subjected to brutal forms of discipline. Donna Sarten was interested in the relationship of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and Shell Shock, with the number of soldiers charged with cowardice. In this work she uses the metaphor of hunting trophies to accentuate the atrocities of war. The installation is arranged into the form of a cross or crucifixion, suggesting the ultimate level of sacrifice required in war. This formation also references Field Punishment No.1, which saw soldiers tied to poles for extended periods of time, resulting in injury and in the case of these five particular soldiers, death. This work was the Joint winner of the Trust Waikato National Contemporary Art Awards 2004, (alongside Joanna Chow and Geoffrey Heath).
Sarten studied art in her forties, graduating with a Bachelor of Visual Arts majoring in Sculpture. While completing a Masters in Fine Arts at the University of Auckland, Sarten began to explore ideas of anxiety. This later evolved into the unspoken effects of war including PTSD, conscientious objectors and extreme discipline of soldiers by their own superiors. Sarten is a member of the ‘Habeas Corpus’ art collective.
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