I had several hours yesterday afternoon after my workshop ended in Canberra, and the War Memorial was highly recommended as a place to visit in Canberra. That was good advice and I was not disappointed. The War Memorial is a large and comprehensive shrine and museum commemorating Australian soldiers across all the wars in which they have fought. I spent most of my time in the Gallipoli and broader WWI exhibits. It would have been easy to spend most of a day going through the museum thoroughly. Gallipoli, a battle and siege in Turkey during WWI is fundamental to Australian history. One of the Australian Prime Ministers said that Australia established itself as a nation through its role and valor at Gallipoli. ANZAC Day (25 April) was originally established in 1916 to commemorate the battle at Gallipoli. ANZAC Day is now officially a commemoration of soldiers from all wars (much like the US Memorial Day), and is one of Australia's most important holidays.
I liked the number of exhibits that were actual art, not just documentary material. Australia had a number of artists who are designated as official war artists (they continue this tradition today - see paintings from Iraq and Afghanistan here). Many of the photos I took were of bronzes made of scenes in the war. I am having some technical problems with blog formatting and will do an update later with more info on some of the specific photos.
I liked the number of exhibits that were actual art, not just documentary material. Australia had a number of artists who are designated as official war artists (they continue this tradition today - see paintings from Iraq and Afghanistan here). Many of the photos I took were of bronzes made of scenes in the war. I am having some technical problems with blog formatting and will do an update later with more info on some of the specific photos.