War and Art: A Visual History of Modern Conflict

(Hardback)

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Description

This sumptuously illustrated volume, edited by eminent war historian Joanna Bourke, offers a comprehensive visual, cultural and historical account of the ways in which armed conflict has been represented in art. Covering the last two centuries, the book shows how the artistic portrayal of war has changed, from a celebration of heroic exploits to a more modern, truthful depiction of warfare and its consequences.Featuring illustrations by artists including Paul Nash, Judy Chicago, Pablo Picasso, Melanie Friend, Francis Bacon, Kathe Kollwitz, Yves Klein, Robert Rauschenberg, Dora Meeson, Otto Dix and many others, as well as those who are often overlooked, such as children, women, non-European artists and prisoners of war, this extensive survey is a fitting and timely contribution to the understanding, memory and commemoration of war, and will appeal to a wide audience interested in warfare, art, history or politics.

Reviews

"War and Art offers a visual, cultural, and historical account of depictions of war and its aftermath over the past two hundred years. The artists and representations cross a variety of media--from paintings, prints, and photography, and comics to film, digital art, and graffiti--In an effort to visualize war, memory, commemorative actions, and outcomes. . . . Richly illustrated with more than four hundred illustrations and including notes for each essay and a brief bibliography of about fifty sources, the volume will be of interest to readers in history, art history, military history, ethnic and cultural identity, memory studies, and related fields of material and cultural heritage. . . . Recommended."-- "Choice"
"It is salutary that one of the leading historians of war and violence, Bourke, whose work defined how these concepts are thought of in relation to gender, emotions, and the body, sought to redress such issues through the prism of visual culture. The result is a large, lavishly illustrated tome expertly edited by Bourke, with sixteen chapters by as many scholars. . . . The book has an impressive arc and span: a survey, reader and primer, all-in-one. . . . War and Art stands out for the way in which it brings together a heterogeneous range of artistic practices and visual modalities--from oil painting to aircraft fuselage, feature films to drone images, embroidery to virtual reality. This rich span allows it to make historical sense of the endless complexity of forms, ideologies, discourses, and ends to which art lends itself in relation to war, as well as to give readers a fuller account of the different subject positions involved. This comprehensive volume, ambitious in scope and scale, is a welcome addition to the literature and a reference point for why visuality matters to the humanities as never before."-- "Journal of Contemporary History"
"The traumas and tragedies of war should never be underestimated or forgotten. They change lives--combatants' and noncombatants'--in unimaginable ways with far-reaching and generational effects. Artists provide visual representations and reminders of the scope and horrors of war. The platitude 'a picture is worth a thousand words' is vividly reaffirmed in War and Art. The book surveys war art of the last two centuries, from the Crimean War through the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. . . . War and Art is an ambitious and captivating survey of the art and commemoration of war. Its readers will not be disappointed."--Timothy J. Demy, US Naval War College "Michigan War Studies Review"

Author Bio

Joanna Bourke is Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London, and Global Innovations Chair at the University of Newcastle, Australia. She is the author of many books, including An Intimate History of Killing (1999), Fear: A Cultural History (2005), The Story of Pain: From Prayer to Painkillers (2014) and Wounding the World: How Military Violence and War-play Invade our Lives (2014).