Imperial War Museum Blog Post 2
I think the reason I have enjoyed going to places like castles or palaces while in Europe is because now there’s a sense of “I was there.” In the way that when I see a king’s throne room dressed with glamorous portraits that they had posed for hours for and their desks where they worked, fantasies of how history happened give yourself a sense of a story. Comparatively, at the Imperial War Museum, there was the same sense of “this artifact brings me to a moment in history,” but obviously the effect is much more somber and reminded me more about how hard Britain was affected in, particularly, the World Wars.
There was sniper camouflage that I had found in one of the exhibits (and had attached as well) that had particularly caught my eye. I remember my first comment that I had made being that it looked like an image straight out of a horror movie. The paint splattered and the whole garb itself looking something cut and sewn with the intention of cranking thousands more for the cause set it apart from polished proper uniforms seen elsewhere in the exhibit. This uniform had seen grit and grim, and there was nothing to identify it for this country or that, but just stood as a ghost born from necessity. Behind it lay a makeshift face mask. This mask was apparently used by a civilian to prevent mustard gas from getting in their eyes made out of a black funeral veil. The fact someone had used the funeral veil to protect themselves from the chemicals while very well probably mourning the loss of a loved one while also locked in combat or the chemicals themselves was a shivering thought, and a story that I tried not to indulge too far before mulling on.
The paintings revealed by Brian Foss pair well with the same sort of vague yet haunting remembrance that sticks with the artifacts at the museum. Unlike the Victorian age paintings, they seemed ambiguous to find truth about the wreckage. They hold an aura around them where steel beams twist like Christmas ribbons and hopeless figures dot doomed landscapes. My interpretation of both these paintings as well as the point of the Imperial War Museum is more than educational, but serve as a monument to all soldiers and civilians that had struggled and died throughout Britain’s military history.
I thought your comparison of the World War 2 paintings to Victorian era paintings was particularly striking. I thought it was interesting how you stated that the paintings were supposed to help find meaning and truth behind all of the damage caused by the world. I think that one of the important parts of museums in general is helping to understand all of the death and chaos caused by these wars and to help people remember these events so they don't happen again. I think your post did a really good job of emphasizing this and how the various aspects of the Imperial War Museum assisted in this.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your comparison between the sniper robe and the paintings. I too had a similar outlook on the artifacts at the museum while I compared the Japanese plane wreckage and the bombed Iraqi car. There is something very ominous and glooming that comes with looking at artifacts from the great war. Like you said, they are a testament to the pain and suffering that many British people faced.The artifacts do not have too much context behind them which, like you said, creates a "vague yet haunting remembrance." I also liked how you mentioned the black veil face mask in the background. In these museums we often only hear about the suffering of the soldiers, but the people too suffered many great losses. Like I said in my blog, these artifacts should serve as a reminder of their sacrifice. The mangled remains fascinate us and force us to think. It gives us a better understanding about life was like for British soldiers in all sorts of wars and conflicts. The paintings and artifacts represent such struggles in a physical form for us to observe and think about.
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