Artist of the Week: Damian Simons

Posted by Traditional School Discipline June 05, 2021

Artist of the Week: Damian Simons

Many people probably won’t know the work of Damian Simons. His real claim to fame (to me, at least) is his two-part series the Schooldays Of Damian Simons. He did both the writing and drawings.

Part one concerns the strap at St Martins.

Teachers at St. Martin's were all expert in the wielding of a strap.

Indented slightly at one end to create a grip, straps were about 24 inches long and perhaps 3/16 of an inch thick, similar to a good quality man's belt in width and thickness.

Crafted with pride, some were decorated with flowers or other designs, including the headmaster's, which was embossed with the drawing of a hand held out for strapping and, for a caption, a Bible reference: Prov. 13:1 ('A wise child loves discipline'). I lost count of the number of times I lined up in the Head's office for a dose of discipline. The image that stays in my mind is of a row of chastened boys with teary faces: Mick, Wayne and the others holding their reddened hands squeezed under their arm-pits and Mr. Rayner and the strap advancing my way; Mr. Rayner positioning each hand carefully before taking up the swing; then the raising of leather over shoulders, and the slamming down of hide on our palms.

Part two covered The Cane At St. Cuthbert’s.

Crusty took about five steps back. He squared up like a bowler at cricket. Then he took a run, cane raised over shoulder, before sweeping it down on the carefully prepared arse of little Bates. As it swung through the air the cane made a sound not unlike the powerful swing of a golf club - a deep, almost throaty Whoap ! (to rhyme with soap). Instead of the pop of a club hitting the golf-ball, however, it came down with a mighty crack - like a shot-gun - and the whack echoed off into the distance through the corridors. Something in the pit of my stomach lurched, like being on a roller-coaster ride. Crusty was going to hurt me.

Here are some of his drawings.