Discovering trench art

The creative expression that comes from the frontlines.
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Across centuries, wars and conflicts have pulled people from their everyday lives into literal and figurative battlefields. Whether they were soldiers, nurses or prisoners of war, they all left big pieces of their individual identity at home.  By creating art, people at war were able express themselves and begin to process what they were experiencing.

Soldiers would make objects from discarded ammunition, take unflinching photographs of their surroundings, and write stories to capture their time as a soldier. These works later became known as ‘trench art.’

It’s become a popular subsection of the folk-art scene, because of the amazing creations that came from crude materials and raw talent.

Join us as we trek through the rich collection of trench art in Trove.

An exhibition with tables full of makeshift items including model ships, drawings and centre pieces.
Schiesser, Carl. Model ships, drawings, centrepieces and wall plaques on display at the arts and crafts exhibition, Holsworthy Internment Camp, New South Wales, May 1916, nla.obj-153381572

Snapshots of war

Carl Schiesser holding his camera
Carl Schiesser holding his camera, Brisbane, approximately 1916.  nla.obj-153362071

Carl Schiesser was a soldier in the German army who was later detained in internment camps in Australia. He documented his experiences through photography, and in the process captured the experiences of other soldiers creating trench art. 

A group of men in a workshop. They are posing for the camera.
Schiesser, Carl, Group of men in a workshop at the internment camp at Holsworthy, New South Wales, 1918 or 1919, nla.obj-153403923

Carls photographs included the arts and crafts exhibition at Holsworthy Internment Camp. The items on display at the exhibition ranged from chess boards to model ships and handmade tools.

View the collection of Carl Schiesser photographs.

Capturing stories in print 

A booklet titled Four Years with the First. The cover features a hand drawn illustration of two soldiers.
1919, Four years with the first, Arden Press, London, nla.obj-2014856

Four Years with The First’ was a publication made from the joint contributions of the First Australian Field Ambulance unit. The book contains poems and diary entries which shared stories of the soldier’s wartime experiences. There are also illustrations throughout, said to be contributed mostly by Private Sheppard and Private Dunne.

The stories and sketches were a way for the soldiers to understand and remember their wartime experiences.

‘That this work will fill a place in our homes, as a reminder of sad days, of glad days, of hard work and recreation, of friends and sometimes of enemies, of four and a half years lived under all sorts of conditions is the sincere wish of its compilers.’ 

One soldiers trash... 

A model of a submarine made out of scrap metal.
Corporal William Young - Australian Imperial Force (AIF) (1918). Trench Art - Model Submarine, Corporal William Young, World War I, 1914-1918. Museums Victoria

Over the course of World War I, it’s hard for anyone to reconcile the amount of ammunition dispensed and the damaged it inflicted. One soldier, Corporal William J. Young from the 22nd Battalion, made a model submarine out of discarded ammunition. 

Portrait of Corporal William Young
Circa 1918, PORTRAIT OF 530, CORPORAL W.J. YOUNG, MM, 22ND BATTALION, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/H06593


Corporal Young’s decision to take something that proved so lethal and turn it into a work of art is one of the fascinating elements of trench art. Objectively, it might not be the most beautiful of objects, but you when factor in the limited number of supplies available, the volatile surroundings and the elements that make up this model, it is an impressive item to behold. 

An ashtray and matchbox holder made out of scrap metal from an ammunition shell.
1939, Trench Art - Matchbox Holder & Ashtray, World War II, 1939-1945. Museums Victoria

This metal ashtray was made from a used two-pound shell during World War II, it has a badge on the front for the Australian Commonwealth Military Forces.  It also features a matchbox holder with a kangaroo jumping over a boomerang.

A coat hanger made out of wood.
Lindau, H. (1940). Coathanger made in internment at Hay in 1940/41 out of material at hand, nla.obj-135569344

This coat hanger was made in the Hay internment camp in the early 1940’s by Hans Lindau. 

Head and shoulders photograph of Hans.
Lindau, H. (1940). Papers of Hans Lindau, nla.obj-382054595  

Hans was born in Berlin in 1895 and enlisted in the army during World War I. He became involved in student relief organisations which eventually led him to England where he was interned in 1940. 

Discover more incredible objects and stories in the papers of Hans Lindau. 

But this isn’t a definitive list, there are an abundance of items to still uncover. From carved wooden models to toys crafted from scrap metal and an incredible array of paintings, there are more than  300 objects in our collection that relate to trench art. Start exploring trench art in Trove.