Art Articles & Reviews

Bernard Poulin – The demons of PTSD
When long time member and masterful portrait painter, Bernard Poulin, asked if I would publish this thought provoking painting of a very troubling subject, I said of course. These atrocities in Rwanda need not happen, yet day in and day out they do., as well, the mental damage inflicted on those soldiers left to watch helplessly from the sidelines. Thank you Bernard for taking a stance and bringing this to our attention again – least we forget.

In 1994, the commander of the UN Assistance Mission for Rwanda Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire anticipated a disaster - a disaster that no world authority wished to acknowledge let alone get involved in. And because none did, the Lt General’s pleas for assistance were ignored. No one came to rescue the people of Rwanda. And because no one did, 800,000 people died. On his watch, Lt General Dallaire witnessed the largest slaughter of human beings since the Holocaust - all because the rest of us on this planet had better things to do. During 100 days no one bothered to “know” what was happening. . .

“The genocide was brutal, criminal and disgusting and continued for 100 days under the eyes of the international community.” - Roméo Dallaire
 
To this day Lt General and retired Canadian Senator Dallaire’s PTSD associated nightmares relentlessly continue. The horrors which were allowed to happen to the people of Rwanda do not leave his soul.   

After a silent yet heavy deliberation, “my” Lt General accepted that I could speak, in my way, to his suffering and to his ongoing quest to save as many child soldiers as possible. The painting : “Portrait of Roméo Dallaire”, begun in 2011, was finally completed in 2016 and is now being unveiled.

I am no longer of any use to it. If it can, this work must now speak on its own - a reminder of what we do not want to remember - a symbol of the world once again at its weakest. If there is art in artwork, the story from within will emerge, will reach out, will touch and move us. If not, it will simply sit there, festering as forgotten infected scars of “not wanting to remember” do .

I would hope by looking at and taking in this story we can see - see and hear the images speak; speak to us in order that “next time” we will listen; that next time we will be reminded once again that we should not forget and that next time we will be encouraged to do better in our tomorrows than we have in our yesterdays’ flawed bests. For there should never again be a next time.

But despite the bleakness, the horror at the beginning of this story, this painting wishes to also be a blessing. Though this imagery recalls a horrendous eating away of  Lt Gen Dallaire’s soul by the demon eyes he still encounters in nightmares, it is also a story of redemption of all of our souls. Despite the ensuing PTSD which assails him daily, Lt General and retired Canadian Senator Dallaire remains the courageous man that he is. He fights on through his “Roméo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative”, working to save stolen children from their captors and the imposed “life of death” which eats away at their childhoods.

And so, in the heart and soul of Roméo Dallaire there remains hope and better tomorrows.
“I know there is a God because in Rwanda I shook hands with the devil. I have seen him, I have smelled him and I have touched him. I know the devil exists and therefore I know there is a God.” - Roméo Dallaire

The full article in English and French on Bernard's website.  More of Bernard Poulin's work can be seen on his website.