Bombardement de Dunkerque (The Bombardment of Dunkirk), unknown maker from Belgium or France

Artwork Overview

Bombardement de Dunkerque (The Bombardment of Dunkirk)
Bombardement de Dunkerque (The Bombardment of Dunkirk)
Bombardement de Dunkerque (The Bombardment of Dunkirk)
1917
Bombardement de Dunkerque (The Bombardment of Dunkirk) , 1917
Where object was made: France
Material/technique: oil; canvas
Credit line: Gift of Professor Eric Gustav Carlson
Accession number: 2014.2524
Not on display
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Images

Label texts

Exhibition Label:
"Empire of Things," Jun-2014, Steve Goddard
Dunkirk, situated near the front lines, served as an important logistical center for the Allied troops fighting in Flanders. Because of its strategic importance the town was frequently subjected to bombing raids. The artist conjures up the sense of panic during a nighttime raid in which lamplight, searchlights, exploding shells, the moon and a fire that has burst out on the horizon compete as sources of light.

Exhibitions

World War I & The End of Empires
Stephen Goddard, curator
2014–2015

Resources

Audio

Audio Tour – Bulldog Podcast
Audio Tour – Bulldog Podcast
The Bombardement de Dunkerque (or The Bombardment of Dunkirk) by an unknown artist is an eye-catching oil on canvas piece of artwork from 1917. It depicts the town of Dunkirk under attack from enemy bombers during the latter years of the First World War, with a small house or building up front surrounded by trenches. The Bombardement de Dunkerque is a very dark painting in a literal sense, with searchlights, the moon, and the explosion of shells providing the only light. This darkness helps create a mien of panic further elaborated upon by a fleeing girl and the distressed body language of the soldiers. One particular soldier can be seen sitting on a pile of sandbags, hunched over with his hands buried in his face almost in a sense of hopelessness. This mood is very apropos considering the time period the Bombardement de Dunkerque was painted. Dunkirk is in Northeast France and was a frequent victim of German air raids. This, along with the prolonged, bloody stalemate happening throughout Europe, must have seemed to have no end. The thought of constantly fighting in a war that seemed to have no end would be horrible.