Description
Mr. Zuber shares in detail his eagerness to volunteer for Korea even as the reality of war appears terrifying!
Edward "Ted" Zuber
Mr. Edward “Ted” Zuber was born October 16, 1932 in Montreal, Quebec. As a child, he was born with the gift of painting. Although not enthralled with school, Mr. Zuber did graduate and then went on to Queens University (Fine Arts). When the Korean War broke out in 1950, he was adamant to enlist and serve his country. He became a parachutist with the 1st Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment. Arriving in Korea in 1952, he took on the role of sniper spending much of his time on the front lines. During this time, Mr. Zuber produced many drawings and, upon returning to Canada, presented thirteen of his canvas collections to the Canadian War Museum. Presently known as the unofficial war artist for Korea, Mr. Zuber’s paintings have become very popular. His painting “Freeze” has been unveiled in honour of the 65th Anniversary of the Korean War. Mr. Zuber has great pride in his service during the Korean War and is honoured to have been recognized for his artwork. Present day, Mr. Zuber finds himself in his studio continuing to paint the images of his wartime experiences, images that never seem to go away. Mr. Zuber resides in Kingston, Ontario with his wife and family.
Transcript
I grew up mostly during the Second World War and radio was the big thing. And I can remember the family, it’s like an old movie I suppose. And I can remember the family were all sitting around the radio in the front room with dim lights. And the program would be perfect because we could only listen to it and conjure up in our mind and, of course, each one of us conjured the image that suited us. So the programs were perfect. And the one program that was so outstanding, I remember I can still feel a degree of emotion. I think it was on Friday nights but that’s not important. It was a Second World War story of a Canadian Lancaster Bomber crew and the heading of the program was, “L for Lanky, Come in L for Lanky!” And, of course, the sounds effects of the engines, the engines of the Lancaster Bomber and the fellows speaking on the intercoms with each other, it was magnificent. I didn’t like school very much. I don’t think I was a very good student. Mathematics was my weakest. And, of course, as an artist if I get creative with the numbers, the answer is wrong, so what did I have, you know? I learned to read very quickly.