This web page will document the artwork of World War I.  The purpose will be to explore how the war was depicted in magazines and journals compiled from images drawn by soldiers on the front lines.  Artwork from soldiers in both the Allied and Axis powers will be included as a means showing how the war was interpreted from either side.  

 

The purpose of this site will be to explore how fighting in the war was conveyed to soldiers as well as civilians, and to attempt to discover what kind of picture each audience was supposed to get of the war.  Were these images supposed to instill a sense of patriotism, or were they supposed to frighten audiences with gruesome depictions?  

 

Emphasis will be placed on works that came from France, the United States, Great Britain and Germany.  Even though blatant propaganda will be included, the focus of this site will be on artwork with a non specific agenda.  For instance, "La Baionnette" was a French publication meant for the enjoyment of French troops, and by looking at the images of this publication it is possible to get an idea of how

the French soldiers were coping with the war.  

 

It is the intention of this site to prove that it is possible to get a more intimate feeling of the Great War through the interpretive arts.