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Introduction (PDF File - 44kb)

Reviews

Trench Art is one of the few "collection"type books based in solid research and not just a celebration of one person's ability to photograph a lot of objects. Jane Kimball has diligently researched and compiled primary accounts and references with a vast selection of superior pieces from numerous collections to present the first-ever complete story of trench art. Not only will the reader view and amazing array of artifacts in this book, he or she will be wiser for having read it. Trench Art is a title for the connoisseur, scholar, and discriminating collector.

Trench Art is more than a catalog of soldier-made objects of commemoration, it is also a look into the very should of the soldiers who fought during the Great War. The reader will find enough variety of shells, carvings, accessories, and trinkets in this book to satisfy any collecting urge. What sets this book apart, however, is the complementary research. Kimball has surmounted an enormous task of sifting through periodicals, memoirs, and diaries to ferret out the most obscure references to soldiers creating artwork in order to combat the drudgery of life in the military.

Never has there been a work on the subject of soldier-created artwork that has come close to the level of scholarship Kimball poured into this book. Through her book, Kimball has catapulted soldier-created memorabilia from the arena of curiosities to the curatorial platform of genuine folk art. Every Great War collector will benefit studying this massive work. Kimball has transformed the expression "trench art" from a collecting sideline to a serious art form.

- JAG