Art of the American Soldier Art of the American Soldier - US Army ...

In ThE ArTIST’S oWn WorDS
This is one of my favorite paintings; I made it into a large
watercolor because it symbolizes for me the holding on
to humanity. Living in a tent city is very different; you see
soldiers adopting pets or creating furniture or having elaborate
road signs to create a homey feeling. The light going
thru the tent reminded me of old stain [sic] glass windows.
—SIEGER HARTGERS
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
I was always interested in the soldier and the fact that people
make the military what it is. The human element is much more
important to me than all the equipment no matter how modern
or sophisticated the equipment is. I believe that the military is
based on cooperation between individuals, and that daily life of a
soldier in combat or training is/was very interesting to document.
The mundane is so much part of a soldier’s daily existence,
like the chaplain playing chess with a soldier, or a soldier
doing the laundry in front of his tent in tent city, soldiers
assisting/helping each other over a wall, a regular medical
unit in combat taking care of soldiers. All soldiers do these
daily actions at one time or other.
So, my works really deal with a soldier’s daily life in combat or
training, and I tried showing daily life of a military man or woman.
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