Brothers in Arms

Below - An old postcard of Oban war memorial as it appeared in the 1920's with the neighbouring glacial boulder providing a perfect foil for the monument.

The composition of the group itself is arguably Carrick’s finest, wonderfully tight and superbly well conceived with the overall shape of the group not only echoing the neighbouring ancient stone but outlining a primitive spearhead. The wounded soldier has his arms draped over his comrades' shoulders while his knees are bent as he is lifted creating a posture reminiscent of a crucifixion ( see Home Page) creating a contemporary image imbued with powerful religious connotations of sacrifice, salvation and deliverance (see Workington 2) . Furthermore the heads and arms of the three soldiers form a circle or ring at the centre of the composition while the wounded soldier's raised legs create a hollowed space like a cup within this central ring. Perhaps this compositional cup and ring is a direct reference to the bronze age markings of the ancient stone and if so then Carrick has again combined the language of Christian and Pagan symbolism within a single image, a tradition which began with the carvers of the Pictish symbol stones.

Carrick's composition is devoid of superfluous detail, the simple lines and solid composition are reminiscent of a Lewis Chesspiece.

One of the soldiers wears a goatskin jerkin, an item used on several of Carrick's war memorials. (see Killin) This is not only historically accurate as an item of clothing worn by many men in the trenches but it also lended itself to Carrick's concept as it lended mass and simplified the lines of the figure,eliminating the need to carve the soldier's kit, while the roughly carved texture of the fur lended itself to the elemental appeal he sought through its similarity to the texture of rock.