AE 2 in the Sea of Marmora, April 1915
This painting shows the Australian submarine AE2 on patrol in the Sea of Marmora. The AE2 was the first allied submarine to penetrate the Narrows of the Dardanelles. The artist has painted AE2 on the bow of the boat to indicate that it is Australian, however the pendant number ’82’ on the conning tower of the submarine was actually allocated to the British E Class submarine, E2. Rather than being perceived as an oversight by the artist, this serves to indicate the broader role and success of the allied E Class submarines that successfully accessed the Narrows through to the Sea of Marmora.
- About Charles Bryant
Charles Bryant grew up in Manly, where he developed a love for the ocean and was a keen surfer and sailor. He began a career as a clerk at the Bank of New South Wales, also studying art under W. Lister and exhibited with the Royal Art Society of NSW.
In 1908 he travelled to London and studied marine painting under seascape artist Julius Olsson at St. Ives in Cornwall. From early in his career, he was interested in depicting coastal scenes and maritime subjects. He exhibited at the Royal Academy and the Paris Salon and worked as an illustrator for Cassell & Co. Publication.
In November 1917, he was appointed an official war artist and enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) on 4 December 1917. He travelled to Western Front attached to the 2nd Division of the AIF. In 1918 he completed sketches and small paintings of bomb-damaged villages and landscapes in France. He also painted the embarkation and disembarkation of Australian troops at Le Havre and Boulogne. Bryant's initial appointment of three months was regularly extended and only terminated after the end of the war on 12 December 1918.
In 1922, he returned to Australia, and in 1923 was sent to the mandated territories in New Guinea to paint scenes of the occupation by the Australians. In 1925, he painted a picture of the American fleet which was presented by Sydney citizens to the United States government. This picture is now at the Capitol, Washington.
Bryant was a founder of the Manly Art Gallery in 1924 and in 1929 vice president of the Royal Art Society of NSW. He continued to exhibit his works in Australia. Following a short illness, Bryant died in Sydney on 22 January 1937.
Sixty-nine of his paintings are in the Australian War Memorial, Canberra. He is also represented in the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Castlemaine and Manly galleries, and the Imperial War Museum, London.
- About HMAS AE 2
His Majesty’s Australian Submarine AE2 was launched in the yard of Vickers Ltd at Barrow-in-Furness, England on 18 June 1913 and commissioned at Portsmouth under the command of Lieutenant Commander Henry Hugh Gordon Dacre Stoker, RN. Her crew of 35 comprised officers and ratings from both the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy and she was the second of two E Class submarines built for the fledgling RAN.
AE2 is best remembered for her heroic penetration of the Dardanelles on 25 April 1915 during the ANZAC landings on the Gallipoli Peninsular.
More reading
- Additional resources for Charles Bryant
- Additional resources for HMAS AE 2
