It’s Wednesday, and time to post the next portrait in the series.
This portrait is of Harry, who served in the RCAF as an armourer, loading bombs into the aircraft and maintaining and arming their guns.
Harry, who is now almost 90, has a great smile, and I hope that his charm comes through in the portrait that I have drawn of him. From my sessions with Harry and his wife, I think there’s something a dare-devil spirit in Harry, which I hope I’ve captured a hint of.
One of Harry’s memories of the war years was when he was stationed in England. There was a problem with the rear gun turret on one of the bombers, and the pilot took Harry up in the plane so that he could try to find the cause of the problem. The pilot warned Harry that he would probably be air-sick because they would be doing a lot of manoeuvres. When Harry said that he didn’t get air-sick, he challenged the pilot to a bet, saying: “I’ll be you a pound that I can scare you quicker on the back of a motorcycle than you can scare me in this aircraft.” The bet was on! Harry made it through the flight without being scared or ill, and when they landed, Harry got his motorbike and the pilot sat on the back. Harry opened the throttle and rode right under the aircraft, between the landing wheels. The pilot gave Harry the pound, but said it was only because he had done a good job fixing the turret.
Harry, who is now almost 90, has a great smile, and I hope that his charm comes through in the portrait that I have drawn of him. From my sessions with Harry and his wife, I think there’s something a dare-devil spirit in Harry, which I hope I’ve captured a hint of.One of Harry’s memories of the war years was when he was stationed in England. There was a problem with the rear gun turret on one of the bombers, and the pilot took Harry up in the plane so that he could try to find the cause of the problem. The pilot warned Harry that he would probably be air-sick because they would be doing a lot of manoeuvres. When Harry said that he didn’t get air-sick, he challenged the pilot to a bet, saying: “I’ll be you a pound that I can scare you quicker on the back of a motorcycle than you can scare me in this aircraft.” The bet was on! Harry made it through the flight without being scared or ill, and when they landed, Harry got his motorbike and the pilot sat on the back. Harry opened the throttle and rode right under the aircraft, between the landing wheels. The pilot gave Harry the pound, but said it was only because he had done a good job fixing the turret.
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