When war was declared in the summer of 1914, it was presumed by most that it would be over by that Christmas. But as it dragged on for more than four years of brutal fighting, heavy losses, and unthinkable atrocities, it was hoped that it would in fact be “the war to end all wars.” April 1917 saw the entrance of American forces in support of the Allies. For the centennial anniversary, this exhibition brings together artwork of the period as well as vivid propaganda posters encouraging people to enlist, save money, grow their own gardens, and much more.

When the war finally ended in November 1918, artists from both sides of the conflict put their efforts into recording the war’s aftermath in poignant, often explicit, images that capture the ravages the war had wrought on civilians and soldiers alike.

The exhibition is drawn from the Johnson’s permanent collection as well as Cornell’s Wortham Military Museum, Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Costume and Textile Collection, and Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives, and private collections.

This exhibition was curated by Nancy E. Green, the Gale and Ira Drukier Curator of European and American Art, Prints & Drawings, 1800–1945, at the Johnson Museum.