John Mennie
Encyclopedia
John George Mennie, A.R.M.S. D.A.(ABDN). ARMS., (26 November 1911, Aberdeen – 24 August 1982, Tirinie, Blair Athol
, Perthshire
) was a Scottish artist who came to public attention in 2011 for his many contemporaneous drawings of his life as a prisoner of war during the Japanese occupation of Singapore
and Thailand
in World War II
. The drawings were made in secret depicting scenes of daily life and personalities in the camps in Singapore and Thailand, working on the Death railway
. They also uniquely documented the Selarang Square Squeeze when some 17,000 prisoners were forced to crowd in the barracks square for nearly five days with little water and no sanitation until they signed a 'promise not to escape'.
Mennie's drawings were donated to the archive at the Imperial War Museum
, but came to wider public notice when a selection from a separate source were featured on an episode of the BBC
television programme Antiques Roadshow
, filmed on 18th September 2011 at Manchester.
, Scotland
, on the 26th November 1911 to Robert and Margaret Mennie. He was known to family and friends as Jack. He trained at Gray's School of Art
in Aberdeen and at Westminster School of Art
in London
. After graduation he worked as a commercial artist in London for eight years until he enlisted in the army in 1940.
in 1940 and was posted in September 1941 to Singapore. ( No 1604539 in the 2nd Highland A.A. regiment, H.K.S.R.A. ) By the time of his capture on the 15 February 1942 he had been promoted to Lance Bombardier. He was captured when Singapore surrendered to the Japanese forces in February 1942 and he was a prisoner of war until August 1945. He was demobbed in 1946 and returned to Aberdeen.
Mennie described his 4 year PoW itinerary in a part of a letter to his mother written at Pratchi camp, Thailand, 5th September 1946.
He was in Changi
, Singapore, from February until October 1942, when he was transferred to Thailand on 5 day rail journey, arriving on 3rd November. Then after a 6 day voyage on a barge up the Mae Klong
river from Kontonburi was dumped on the side of a mountain with jungle starting from the bank. They had to clear a space and build a camp from the material around them, bamboo. At 'Kano' their task was to build 10 miles of railway along the mountain. He noted that of the 600 men, 125 were dead within 6 months.
He left Kano camp in August 1943 and went to Chungkai, 2 miles from Konton buri until May 1944. He was then moved to Nakom Paton, a place that he cheerfully described to his mother as [ having ] the second largest Buddhist temple in the world.
In January 1945 he was moved 'up country' to a camp called Tamawan. In May 1945 he was moved again, a 6 day journey to Pratchi camp where the prisoners had to tunnel into a mountain to make bomb proof magazines for ammunition.
His meagre materials were pen, pencil, scraps of paper and card including 'white space' torn from manuals, plus a Chinese 'Childrens watercolour paintbox'.
Mennie's drawings in the camps include:
, London.
in circa 1931 he worked as a commercial artist in London for eight years until he enlisted in the army in 1940.
In 1947, after his demobbed from the army, Mennie started teaching life drawing and painting at the Marylebone Institute of Adult Education, later run by the Inner London Education Authority
. He also ran an 'art stall' at Nicolls Antique Market in Portobello Road
.
Mennie was a member of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters Sculptors and Gravers
.
. Later they lived at Studio House, Colville Road, London W11 which had a purpose built studio with a partial glass roof on the top floor.
Blair Athol
Blair Athol may refer to several places:*Blair Athol, South Australia*Blair Athol, New South Wales, Australia*Blair Atholl, ScotlandIn sport:*Blair Athol was a British thoroughbred racehorse...
, Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
) was a Scottish artist who came to public attention in 2011 for his many contemporaneous drawings of his life as a prisoner of war during the Japanese occupation of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The drawings were made in secret depicting scenes of daily life and personalities in the camps in Singapore and Thailand, working on the Death railway
Death Railway
The Burma Railway, also known as the Death Railway, the Thailand–Burma Railway and similar names, was a railway between Bangkok, Thailand, and Rangoon, Burma , built by the Empire of Japan during World War II, to support its forces in the Burma campaign.Forced labour was used in its construction...
. They also uniquely documented the Selarang Square Squeeze when some 17,000 prisoners were forced to crowd in the barracks square for nearly five days with little water and no sanitation until they signed a 'promise not to escape'.
Mennie's drawings were donated to the archive at the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, but came to wider public notice when a selection from a separate source were featured on an episode of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television programme Antiques Roadshow
Antiques Roadshow
Antiques Roadshow is a British television show in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom to appraise antiques brought in by local people. It has been running since 1979...
, filmed on 18th September 2011 at Manchester.
Early life
John Mennie was born at 28 Clarence Street, AberdeenAberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, on the 26th November 1911 to Robert and Margaret Mennie. He was known to family and friends as Jack. He trained at Gray's School of Art
Gray's School of Art
Gray's School of Art is an integral part of the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen that is one of the oldest established fine art institutions in Scotland...
in Aberdeen and at Westminster School of Art
Westminster School of Art
The Westminster School of Art was an art school in Westminster, London. It was located at 18 Tufton Street, Deans Yard, Westminster, and was part of the old Architectural Museum.H. M. Bateman described it in 1903 as...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. After graduation he worked as a commercial artist in London for eight years until he enlisted in the army in 1940.
WWII - Singapore and Thailand
Mennie joined the Royal ArtilleryRoyal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
in 1940 and was posted in September 1941 to Singapore. ( No 1604539 in the 2nd Highland A.A. regiment, H.K.S.R.A. ) By the time of his capture on the 15 February 1942 he had been promoted to Lance Bombardier. He was captured when Singapore surrendered to the Japanese forces in February 1942 and he was a prisoner of war until August 1945. He was demobbed in 1946 and returned to Aberdeen.
Mennie described his 4 year PoW itinerary in a part of a letter to his mother written at Pratchi camp, Thailand, 5th September 1946.
He was in Changi
Changi
Changi is an area at the eastern end of Singapore. It is now the site of Singapore Changi Airport/Changi Air Base, Changi Naval Base and is also home to Changi Prison, site of the former Japanese Prisoner of War Camp during World War II which held Allied prisoners captured in Singapore and Malaysia...
, Singapore, from February until October 1942, when he was transferred to Thailand on 5 day rail journey, arriving on 3rd November. Then after a 6 day voyage on a barge up the Mae Klong
Mae Klong
The Mae Klong is a river in western Thailand. The river begins at the confluence of the Khwae Noi or Khwae Sai Yok and the Khwae Yai River or Khwae Si Sawat in Kanchanaburi, pass Ratchaburi Province and empties into the Gulf of Thailand in Samut Songkhram....
river from Kontonburi was dumped on the side of a mountain with jungle starting from the bank. They had to clear a space and build a camp from the material around them, bamboo. At 'Kano' their task was to build 10 miles of railway along the mountain. He noted that of the 600 men, 125 were dead within 6 months.
He left Kano camp in August 1943 and went to Chungkai, 2 miles from Konton buri until May 1944. He was then moved to Nakom Paton, a place that he cheerfully described to his mother as [ having ] the second largest Buddhist temple in the world.
In January 1945 he was moved 'up country' to a camp called Tamawan. In May 1945 he was moved again, a 6 day journey to Pratchi camp where the prisoners had to tunnel into a mountain to make bomb proof magazines for ammunition.
Secret drawings
Mennie created two series of secret drawings while he in the camps:- a documentary series detailing Japanese barbarity and the conditions endured by prisoners. He secreted these in the stem of a bambooBambooBamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
walking stickWalking stickA walking stick is a device used by many people to facilitate balancing while walking.Walking sticks come in many shapes and sizes, and can be sought by collectors. Some kinds of walking stick may be used by people with disabilities as a crutch...
; - a set of eighty sketch portraits of his comrades which he secreted under the piece of wood on which he kept his mess tinMess tinA mess tin is an item of mess kit, designed to be used over portable cooking apparatus. A mess tin can be thought of as a portable version of a saucepan, intended primarily for boiling but also useful for frying...
. These were eventually discovered by the Japanese, removed, stolen back from the Japanese camp office, made their way back to the UK and were posted to his mother's address in Aberdeen.
His meagre materials were pen, pencil, scraps of paper and card including 'white space' torn from manuals, plus a Chinese 'Childrens watercolour paintbox'.
Mennie's drawings in the camps include:
- Selerang Square Squeeze, Singapore, September 1942. Captioned 16,500 British + Australian POW from Changi area herded in Selerang Square for four days to force them to sign documents promising not to attempt to escape.
- L/Col Dunlop A.I.F Medical Corps, performing operation in the open at Kanung PoW camp, Thailand May 1943
- Servicemen depicted carol singing in a bid to keep their spirits up, Christmas Eve, 1943. Dysentery Ward. Ching-Kai POW Camp, Thai-Burma Railway
Imperial War Museum
Mennie created many drawings during his time as a prisoner of war, and in 1978 over fifty pieces were donated to the archives in the Imperial War MuseumImperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
, London.
Art and teaching career
After graduation from the Westminster School of ArtWestminster School of Art
The Westminster School of Art was an art school in Westminster, London. It was located at 18 Tufton Street, Deans Yard, Westminster, and was part of the old Architectural Museum.H. M. Bateman described it in 1903 as...
in circa 1931 he worked as a commercial artist in London for eight years until he enlisted in the army in 1940.
In 1947, after his demobbed from the army, Mennie started teaching life drawing and painting at the Marylebone Institute of Adult Education, later run by the Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
. He also ran an 'art stall' at Nicolls Antique Market in Portobello Road
Portobello Road
Portobello Road is a street in the Notting Hill district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in west London, England. It runs almost the length of Notting Hill from south to north, roughly parallel with Ladbroke Grove. On Saturdays it is home to Portobello Road Market, one of London's...
.
Mennie was a member of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters Sculptors and Gravers
Royal Society of Miniature Painters Sculptors and Gravers
The aims of the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers are to esteem, protect and practice the traditional 16th Century art of miniature painting emphasising the infinite patience needed for its fine techniques. Its patron is His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.The society...
.
Personal life
He met Dorothy (Bertha Dorothy Linter Cole) when she enrolled at one of his evening classes at the Marylebone Institute of Adult Education, and she became an accomplished artist. They first lived at The Studio, Holland Park AvenueHolland Park Avenue
Holland Park Avenue is a street located in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, in west central London in England. The street runs from Notting Hill Gate in the east to the Holland Park Roundabout in the west, and forms a part of the old west road connecting London with Oxford and the west...
. Later they lived at Studio House, Colville Road, London W11 which had a purpose built studio with a partial glass roof on the top floor.