‘Bob’s Brother’ Oil on Linen by Janice Lightowler

Who is Bob?
Bob is a sailor I painted many years ago. I was inspired to paint 'Bob's Brother' when I visited the Outer Hebrides.

During my trip I noticed that the dates on the War Memorials for WW1 were strangely 1914 to 1919 and they were all immaculately kept despite the challenging environment. Then I noticed many of the guest houses I visited displayed portraits of young men. The islanders were so friendly and loved to talk so I asked about these two things and discovered they were connected. What I learnt explained why the grief is still so profound across the Outer Hebrides.

In the early hours of 1st January 1919 a ship, HMY lolaire, trying to bring men home from the war in time for Hogmanay, encountered a bad storm and tragically it ran aground only metres from the Stornoway shore; over 200 young men were drowned.

One of the portraits in the guesthouse where I stayed was the great uncle of my host. He told me that his great uncle was one of the two brothers returning from the war but they had not been able to get on the same ship. One of the brothers got a boat the following day and as a result he survived, the other didn't.

This tragedy devasted the small population on he islands and the impact is still obvious today. I struggled to convey the emotions of the islanders and I felt a great weight in trying to portray this sense of grief which deeply moved me.

Is 'Bob's Brother' the one who mourns or the one who was lost?