Darsie Japp
Darsie Japp was an artist who painted landscapes and figure compositions. During World War I, he served as a major in the Royal Field Artillery and earned the Military Cross for his bravery. The painting we're talking about today is unique, with bright, cartoon-like explosions. It was meant to be a poster, but it's not clear what it was advertising. In 1918, the British War Memorial Committee asked Japp to paint a scene from the war with The Royal Field Artillery in Macedonia, but he decided not to become a professional artist after advice from another artist, Henry Lamb. Instead, he chose to breed racehorses.
In the painting, there's a bugler sitting on a horse, blowing his bugle up into the air. The background looks like the inside of a circus tent, with a yellow sky and bomb explosions drawn in a playful way. The words on the ground, around the horse's feet, say "THE RA BAND IS COMING."
I love the colors of the scene; I wonder what would be other works of Japp, if he had not given up painting!
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