The Art of World War II: A Culture Show Special

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The Art of WWII: A Culture Show Special

Alastair Sooke

Bill MacLeod

Emily Kennedy

Janet Lee

The Culture Show: The Art of World War II: A Culture Show Special

The Art of World War Two: A Culture Show Special

13/09/2010

BBC Two - The Culture Show, The Art of World War II: A Culture Show Special

Alastair Sooke explores the often overlooked history of Britain's wartime renaissance.

Alastair Sooke explores the often overlooked history of Britain's wartime renaissance. He meets the Blitz survivors and factory workers who became the subject of iconic paintings.

To mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the Culture Show presents a special on the art of World War II. Despite being locked into a life-or-death struggle, wartime Britain saw an extraordinary explosion of art. From portraits to posters, cartoons to huge canvases, art was suddenly everywhere. Among the works were some of the most intense and immediate creations of the 20th century.

Presenter Alastair Sooke explores the often overlooked history of Britain's wartime renaissance. He meets the Blitz survivors, factory workers and Land Girls who became the subject of iconic paintings and talks to contemporary war artists about the challenges of creating art in conflict zones. Travelling from the shipyards of the Clyde to the concentration camps of northern Germany Alastair discovers how art bore witness, rising above propaganda to create an enduring, deeply humane record of the 'People's War' and laying the groundwork for our own understanding of what art should be and do.

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