Artists of The Great War

1914 - 1918

Great War 1914-1918

The global military conflict that embroiled most of the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing powers.

• It lasted four years with a death toll of 15 million people were killed, making it one of the deadliest conflicts in history.

Events Leading up to 1914

The immediate or proximate cause of war was the assassination on 28 June 1914 of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Gavrilo Princip, Serbian nationalist.

Declaration of War

Max Beckmann, Der Kriegsausbruch (Declaration of War), 1914, drypoint, 19.8 x 24.8 cm.

Otto Dix

Otto Dix, Selbstbildnis mit Artillerie-Helm (Self-Portrait Wearing a Gunner's Helmet), 1914, ink and watercolour on paper, on both sides, 68 x 53.5 cm, Municipal Gallery, Stuttgart.

Gassed

John Singer Sergeant, Gassed, 1918-19, oil on canvas, 2310 x 6111 cm, Imperial War Museum, London.

John Singer Sergeant

Madame X

Otto Dix

Otto Dix, Selbstbildnis als Soldat (Self-Portrait as a Soldier), 1914, ink and watercolour on paper, on both sides, 68 x 53.5 cm, Municipal Gallery, Stuttgart.

Ossip Zadkine

Ossip Zadkine, Loude, 1916, Indian ink and watercolour on paper, 26 x 33.5 cm, Musée d'Histoire Contemporaine - BDIC, Paris.

John Singer Sergeant

William Orpen

William Orpen, Thiepval, 1917, oil on canvas, 63.5 x 76.2 cm, Imperial War Museum, London.

John Nash, Over the Top, oil on canvas, 79.4 x 107.3 cm, Imperial War Museum, London.

C.R. W. Nevinson

C. R. W. Nevinson, La Patrie, 1916, oil on canvas, 60.8 x 92.5 cm, City Museum and Art Gallery, Birmingham.