Early Modern Art
The Effects of World War 1 on Art
Tunnellers, 1916
Christopher Richard Wynne Nevinson. London, England
Tunnellers relates to World War 1 by the tunnel worker wearing a gas mask. He is holding out a Canary, which acted as a warning sign for dangerous gases. Marek Pruszewicz from bbc.com stated that Germans in WW1 had pressurized gas canisters that released chlorine gas. The main cause of death from mustard gas was asphyxiation (Pruszewicz).
The art elements I like about Tunnellers is the line work, especially on the tunneller himself. I also like the pattern on the wooden supports holding up the tunnel. I also like the contrast between the illusion of light and the darkness of the tunnel. This painting stirs up a sense of dread and fear, not knowing if the tunnel is free of deadly gas.
The Christmas Truce of 1914, Unknown photographer.
12/25/1914, Aisne Valley, France.
On Christmas day, 1914, the allies and the Germans had a cease fire (Townsend). I remember my German teacher in high school telling us about the cease fire. My teacher said both sides held up white flags and met each other in the middle of no mans land. He said both sides started singing Christmas songs, exchanging presents and stories with each other. As you can see above, both sides have a friendly match of soccer. My teacher also said both sides refused to fight with each other after Christmas was over. Both sides had to bring in new soldiers to resume the fighting. I found it inspiring that there was a momentary truce, especially in such a brutal war.
A Battery Shelled, 1919
Percy Wyndham Lewis. Imperial War Museum. London, England
Percy Windham Lewis drew inspiration from Cubist and Expressionism to invent Voritcism (britannica.com). Lewis described Vorticism as a observing from a still point, as society whirls around in a vortex like fashion (britannica.com). The central focus or the still point is the three soldiers near the center digging trenches. The trenches have a sense of rhythm and movement. I enjoy the line work, as well as the perspective between the artillery and the trenches. The emotions painting elicits is a sense of admiration and respect towards the soldiers who fought inside the trenches.
The influence of World War 1 has had a profound effect on art. Art from the World War 1 period has have varied messages. Such as the painting from Percy Wyndham Lewis, the painting is a homage to the soldiers fighting in the trenches. Some other artists captured the brutality of World War 1, their message is clear that war is ugly and everyone should strive for peace. My favorite World War 1 moment was the Christmas Day cease fire. A lot of the art I found about the cease was post World War 1.
Bibliography
Pruszewicz, Marek. “How Deadly Was the Poison Gas of WW1?” BBC News, BBC, 30 Jan. 2015, www.bbc.com/news/magazine-31042472.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Wyndham Lewis". Encyclopedia Britannica, Invalid Date, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Wyndham-Lewis. Accessed 30 March 2021.
Townsend, Jon. “If Only for a Day: the Christmas Truce Match of 1914.” These Football Times, 23 Dec. 2018, thesefootballtimes.co/2018/12/23/if-only-for-a-day-the-christmas-truce-of-1914/.
I really like how you chose three works that vary from one another, each possessing their own different artistic elements that reflect each artists' approach of capturing WWI, as well as different mediums. I like how in the first painting the artist captures the tunneller in a more dark dramatic scene, in comparison to the third painting, where Lewis' approach was more vibrant and expressive. It's interesting seeing the influence of the war in artworks from this period, as all artists' experiences varied from one another, and not all present the same emotions and message.
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ReplyDeleteI really like your choices, I think it was so cruel for people to use those poor little birds like that; so cruel. I think this is a beautiful piece, I love how the tunnel is depicted here.
My husband is a huge history buff and I remember him telling me that as well when we went to a WW1 museum. It's so crazy unbelievable that the war happened, after seeing and learning about the Christmas truce it makes you think, if people would have done this before and they were not so busy at listening to their governments telling them that the other people were bad for this or that reason, would we have had a war?
I worked at the Veterans Hospital and I loved talking to the Veterans there, they would always tell me how they are proud to have been part of WW2 and have been part of the change but they do regret that we had it at all because they now see that it was pointless and we should have learned from the 1st one. Especially because a lot of them lost so much physically and emotionally.
I loved how all three of the works you chose fit a dark dystopian vibe despite different styles and mediums being utilized. I like that Tunnellers looks like horror movie poster as it would fit the situation the paintings in well. World War 1 was definitely a worldwide culture shock of the cruelty man kind is capable of.
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