Trench Art: An Illustrated History

Early in World War I, the French press published illustrations of objects made by the 'artisanat de tranchees' (craftsmen of the trenches). Translated into English as 'trench art', this label stuck and continues to be used to describe pieces created from spent war materials or from items of military equipment. Soldier and civilian artisans on both sides of the conflict in the 'War to End All Wars' recycled and transformed materials designed to kill other human beings into an amazingly creative and diverse body of folk art that has been largely ignored by art historians and museum curators until recently. Some World War I trench art pieces were made as personal war mementoes by the artisans who created them, but many were sold to soldiers to take or send home as souvenirs. After the war, civilians and ex-soldiers in war-torn France and Belgium established cottage workshops that produced large numbers of 'trench art' souvenirs for sale to post-war battlefield tourists. Although the major focus of this book is on Great War trench art, several chapters describe and illustrate soldier crafts from earlier and more recent wars to fit these objects into a centuries old tradition that continues to the present day.

THE ULTIMATE TRENCH ART COLLECTORS VOLUME !

Author: Jane A. Kimball
Publisher: Silverpenny Press
Extra Details: Pictorial Hardback 8 x 10 inches tall,402 Pages, lavishly illustrated with Colour and B&W photos and artworks throughout.