The first global survey of art in World War II, this volume features selected biographies of artists and detailed discussions of war-era art worlds in China, France, Italy, Japan, Germany, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, Spain, and the United States. Readers can compare and contrast artists' experiences of war in these different countries. They will observe the artists' wide range of responses to war, from producing art works that actively supported the war effort, to criticism of death and destruction. Chapters begin with short synopses of the art worlds in each of these countries leading up to World War II. Following this are approximately five detailed biographies of selected artists whose works exhibited a wide range of responses to the war efforts of their nation. Their works cover a range of artistic styles, from traditional to modern, and demonstrate the blurred boundaries of "art" and "propaganda" during this period. The influence of their works on World War II and how their communities, and the world, responded to those works, gives readers a unique view on the powerful influence of art in war.

McCloskey (art history, U. of Pittsburgh) presents a survey of WWII artists from most of the regions involved in combat. She begins with a timeline that includes both world events and art events, and then dedicates a chapter each to artists in China, France, Italy, Germany, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, Spain, and the US. Each chapter begins with a brief overview the country's art world during the time leading up to WWII, and then presents detailed biographies of several selected artists from that country. Famous and lesser-known artists are included, with styles that range from traditional to modern, and responses to the war that range from protest to propaganda.
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[This] concisely written and well-structured historical account of art before and during World War II fills an important gap within available histories of modern art. McCloskey not only convincingly demonstrates that the production of art during these violent times is inseparable from the agendas of political systems, dictatorships and the democracies alike, but also stresses the coexistence of traditional, often regionally informed artistic endeavors, and progressive styles.... Their biographies attest to the complexity of the politicization of aesthetics. Her book shouldn't be missed by anyone interested in the intersection of art and politics.Sabine Eckmann, Washington University, author and co-editor of Exiles+Emigres: The Flight of European Artists from Hitler

Barbara McCloskey's Artists of World War II is the first book that attempts to provide a synthetic survey of the art in the countries of major combatants in World War II, both east and west. The book is rich in institutional detail and, unlike most comparative discussions of art in these countries for the interwar period, does not short change either the political history or the artistic debates. Each chapter is coherently organized and accessible, with useful artistic biographies of key players. Global in scope and ambitious in scale, this book functions as a strong primer for students new to the field but also, for the specialist, details compelling questions of the political function of art in democratic, communist, and fascist states during times of military conflict.Paul B. Jaskot, DePaul University, author of The Architecture of Oppression: The SS, Forced Labor and the Nazi Monumental Building Economy

[A]n excellent, thought-provoking art history. Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty researchers; general readers.Choice

[P]resents a survey of WWII artists from most of the regions involved in combat.Reference &Research Book News/Art Book News Annual

The first global survey of art in WWII, this volume presents artists whose work both supported and criticized their nations' war efforts.

The first global survey of art in WWII, this volume features selected biographies of artists and detailed discussions of war-era art worlds in China, France, Italy, Japan, Germany, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, Spain, and the United States. Readers can compare and contrast artists' experiences of war in these different countries. They will observe the artists' wide range of responses to war, from producing art works that actively supported the war effort, to criticism of death and destruction.

BARBARA McCLOSKEY is an associate professor of art history at the University of Pittsburg. She is the author of George Grosz and the Communist Party: Art and Radicalism in Crisis, 1918 to 1936.

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Art and World War II

Artists in China: Between War and Civil War

Artists in France: Between Collaboration and Resistance

Artists in Germany: Constructing the "Thousand-Year Reich"

Artists in Great Britain: Creating Art as Propaganda during "The Blitz"

Artists of Italy: Shaping a Fascist Culture of Consensus

Artists in Japan: Relating Tradition and Modernity to the Art of "Holy War"

Artists in the Soviet Union: Defending Communist Utopia

Artists in Spain: Waging a Media War

Artists in the United States: Selling War and Peace in the "American Century"

Conclusion: Remembering World War II

Timeline

Bibliography

Index