David Lloyd Blackwood b. 1941

William Gough, David Blackwood, Master Printmaker, Toronto, 2001, pp. 136-137, for The Burning of the S.S. Diana, reproduced in colour

Farley Mowat, Wake of the Great Sealers, Prints and Drawings by David Blackwood, Toronto, 1973, p. 86 for an account of the S.S. Diana and p. 87 for The Burning of the S.S. Diana, reproduced in colour

The Diana began her life in 1869 in Dundee, Scotland, as a whaling ship known as Hector.  Each February, she was sent from Scotland to St. John's, Newfoundland in order to participate in the seal fishery.  This lasted until May, at which point she would discharge the seals and sealers in St. John's and head northwards to Davis Strait and Baffin Bay, cruising the icy waters for bowhead whales.  When the autumnal gales began, she would return home to Dundee, weary from her travels.  Though overworked, she was kept in good condition by her owners while at rest. 

In 1892 she was bought by a St. John's firm, renamed Diana, and given over completely to sealing.  She spent a few months on the hard waters, and for the remainder of the year was neglected, receiving cursory attention and minimal repairs.  By 1922, she was fifty-three years old and had fallen into such disrepair that everyone, including her owners, knew that she was unfit to sail.  Despite this, and partially due to a lack of other viable ships, Diana set sail one fateful day in 1922 and caught fire, a blaze that killed one hundred and sixty-seven members of her crew. 

David Blackwood's depiction of the Burning of the S.S. Diana captures the on-shore reaction of this disaster in which so many men lost their lives, and which many could have predicted.  While no boat is represented, the flames in the distance, red tones of the image, and onlooker's accusatory faces allude to tragic nature of this event.  A native of Newfoundland, Blackwood was raised with a strong understanding of the traditions of his culture, and the ever-present perils that faced men at sea.  Blackwood's various images of sealers often reference the danger associated with this occupation, however Diana documents not the natural threat of icy waters and foul weather, but the man-made threat of corruption and greed.