NEWS RELEASE
THE STEEL SPIRIT
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James Lightle is originally from Port Hope, where he and his brother were befriended by a Second World War veteran, Bill Northcott.
Their routine of friendship with Bill included endless rounds of euchre. “Bill was a kind-hearted man who loved people. He was like a third grandparent who lived a few houses away.” Bill carried himself with pride and dignity, but when pressed about his time in uniform, he spoke sparingly.
On Nov. 11, 1999, during a break from his University of Ottawa classes, James strolled the promenades of Ottawa and witnessed a company of veterans en route to a celebration of remembrance. He was struck by the confidence and distinction those men and women carried. That day, James chose to become a soldier. In December 2000, alongside his older brother, James fulfilled his objective and enlisted in the Canadian Forces as a combat engineer.
Following basic training, he obtained his trade qualifications at CFB Gagetown, and then was posted to 2 Combat Engineer Regiment (2CER), CFB Petawawa. In December 2002, James became a certified combat diver. In Bosnia from 2003-04, James served in the United Nations Stabilisation Force to facilitate de-mining and the disposal of weapons and small arms munitions.
A highlight of deactivating an improvised explosive device was knowing your actions have saved lives. The low point of this work is called post-blast forensics — the requirement to clean up after an event.
In August 2006, James and the 2CER were deployed to the Afghanistan theatre of war and assigned to Task Force 306, Operation Medusa. On Sept. 18, 2006, a blast occurred that killed four Canadian soldiers, and wounded many other soldiers, villagers, and livestock. James responded to that event in a post-blast forensics role. This has left an enduring impact on his life.
Ten days later, on Sept. 28, 2006, while on patrol, James was severely injured when his vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device. Although he did not lose consciousness, James accepted at that moment that his injuries were life altering.
In 2007, James was diagnosed with his post-traumatic stress injury. During his recovery and work integration, James worked at a buffalo farm, a dog kennel, and then as a tour guide at the Champlain Trail Museum, at the Upper Ottawa Valley Heritage Centre. It was also around this time that James began carving — specifically, canes, as he knows he will need one as he ages.
James also created a poignant piece of art titled He Cried on September 18th, and it depicts the result of the attack he saw prior to his own injury. In the background, four silhouettes represent the soldiers no longer with us. In the foreground, a soldier dressed in desert fatigues has buried his face in his hands.
In 2008, James attended a nine-week program dedicated to post-traumatic stress recovery. During this phase, he explored art therapy as an alternative method of expression through creativity and imagination, primarily through painting and photography. Some insight is revealed through the pareidolia effect, the tendency to see random or ambiguous patterns in clouds, trees, or rocks, depending on that day’s perspective.
Seeking to further his mediums of creativity, James attended the Haliburton School of Art in 2015. The sculpture program gave him the power to explore his skills by branching into sculpting and carving, specifically bison horn and skull, deer antler, and tagua nut. These materials provided the mechanism to express concepts and produce renderings that cannot be conveyed in words. James went on to become the class valedictorian.
In James’s evolution and recovery following his physical injury, he met his future partner, Jamie Lee. In 2015, James and Jamie Lee moved to Nova Scotia and opened the Round Hill Art Gallery, at 228 St. George St., Annapolis Royal.
In 2019, Barbara Brown, founder of The Steel Spirit, connected with James and Jamie Lee to host a pop-up Steel Spirit art gallery at their Round Hill Studio. The Steel Spirit is a platform for artists from the services to display their artwork and their personal stories. Sixteen artists from the area were involved in the gallery. Recently, James was a presenter for an online webinar for The Steel Spirit and shared more about his moving story and evolution as an artist.
“James has seen the heartbreaking side of humanity and yet he found his way through it. His openness about his own journey continues to help other veterans, and for that he is an inspiration. The layers in his artwork reflect the layers of his heart, and it is this optimism and strength that genuinely inspires others.” — Barbara Brown
James continues the magic that is his art journey — the joy of results created from his imagination. Some art is driven by the intense events in his life, yet other inspirations come from an idea, or perhaps an odd cloud formation. The episodes and incidents that have formed James’s life have led him to where he is, believing in stewardship and the obligation to leave something better than when discovered. When asked if he would “do it again,” James was clear: “In a heartbeat.”
Bill Northcott would have been proud.
The Steel Spirit is a platform for artwork submissions by military, first responder and hospital practitioners. They are always looking for new and emerging artists with and without experience, from every background and every age. For more information or if you would like to be involved, please visit www.thesteelspirit.ca.
— Written by Brian Lintner
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