Great War Artist Len Smith

The Pictures and Diary of a Wartime Artist by Len Smith has featured on the BBC Today Programme, Trevor MacDonald News at Ten, Daily Mail, Guardian, Independent, The Times, Daily Telegraph, Daily Express, The Mirror, The Sun, ITV...to name a few

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Unseen and unpublished. An amazing insight into the First World War by war artist Len Smith.
His diary is packed with more than 360 illustrations - many of them watercolors and sketches that have only been seen by his immediate family. Our software allows you to zoom in on these images, like the one above of Vimy Ridge. Experts have said that for this number of illustrations to survive from a Great War artist is very rare

Historian Christy Campbell said of the diary on BBC radio: "Isn't it wonderful when something like this happens - a time capsule bursting out of a family archive...
"I wish I could have met him - a sniper's rifle in one hand and an artist's brush in the other."

Originally handwritten by Len Smith in pencil, the text was smuggled home from the trenches in his puttees (leggings) during leave.
The illustrations in The Pictures and Diary of a Wartime Artist transport the reader through his experiences on several key battlefields including Vimy Ridge.

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Pictures below: War artist Len Smith; poppies pressed in the diary and a German prayer book collected as British forces advanced. See more drawings at The Pictures and Diary of a Wartime Artist Gallery

Great war artist Len Smith tried to publish during his lifetime but the cost of reproducing his wonderful colour images meant that he was unsuccessful. His drawing of Vimy Ridge showing German positions was used by senior officers to plan their military strategy.