Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?

The notion of Official WarArtists seems to suggest the worst aspects of totalitarian propaganda. The morale-boosting dimension of the work supposedly expected of them seems incompatible with creative freedom―the hallmark of the true artist. The article argues that at first glance the work of people...

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Main Author: Antoine Capet
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Presses universitaires de Rennes 2006-09-01
Series:Revue LISA
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/1999
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author Antoine Capet
author_facet Antoine Capet
author_sort Antoine Capet
collection DOAJ
description The notion of Official WarArtists seems to suggest the worst aspects of totalitarian propaganda. The morale-boosting dimension of the work supposedly expected of them seems incompatible with creative freedom―the hallmark of the true artist. The article argues that at first glance the work of people like Edward Ardizzone, Bill Brandt and Henry Moore seems to show that they were a poor choice from the point of view of the authorities, since the morale-boosting aspect of their Home Front scenes was far from obvious at first glance. Indeed the 1942-1943 Exhibition provoked adverse reactions on the part of the visiting public. Yet, it can be argued that fundamentally, at a deeper level, these official artists indirectly praise the indestructibility of British values. Compared with the less subtle propaganda of the Ministry of Information, these works may have been subliminally more convincing―and therefore more valuable for the war effort.
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spelling doaj-art-5a061868e3bc464bafa7f7eceb6772912025-01-06T09:02:20ZengPresses universitaires de RennesRevue LISA1762-61532006-09-014629010.4000/lisa.1999Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?Antoine CapetThe notion of Official WarArtists seems to suggest the worst aspects of totalitarian propaganda. The morale-boosting dimension of the work supposedly expected of them seems incompatible with creative freedom―the hallmark of the true artist. The article argues that at first glance the work of people like Edward Ardizzone, Bill Brandt and Henry Moore seems to show that they were a poor choice from the point of view of the authorities, since the morale-boosting aspect of their Home Front scenes was far from obvious at first glance. Indeed the 1942-1943 Exhibition provoked adverse reactions on the part of the visiting public. Yet, it can be argued that fundamentally, at a deeper level, these official artists indirectly praise the indestructibility of British values. Compared with the less subtle propaganda of the Ministry of Information, these works may have been subliminally more convincing―and therefore more valuable for the war effort.https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/1999
spellingShingle Antoine Capet
Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
Revue LISA
title Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
title_full Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
title_fullStr Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
title_full_unstemmed Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
title_short Que nous apprennent les « artistes officiels » sur le front de l’intérieur (Home Front) dans la Grande-Bretagne en guerre, 1940-1945 ?
title_sort que nous apprennent les artistes officiels sur le front de l interieur home front dans la grande bretagne en guerre 1940 1945
url https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/1999
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