Why Does Art Matter in War?
Channel: War Studies KCL
Date: 11/11/2021

Chair: Professor Rachel Kerr, Professor of War and Society, Department of War Studies

Speakers:
Professor Sir Lawrence Freedman, Professor Emeritus of War Studies, King’s College London
Dr Jan Willem Honig, Senior Lecturer in War Studies, King’s College London
Rebecca Newell, Head of Art, Imperial War Museum
Dr Paul Lowe, Reader in Documentary Photography, London School of Communication, University of the Arts London

War is a distinctly human activity. So is art. It is no wonder then that as long as humanity has fought wars and sought peace, artists have responded in as varied and diverse ways as the wars that provoked them.

Art offers a means to expand our understanding of the nature and character of war through the application of different lens, and, crucially, a means to understand society’s changing attitudes to war and peace.

This panel, convened by the Arts and Conflict Hub in the Department of War Studies reflects on the relationship between art (in all its visual forms, including drawing, painting, sculpture, film photography, posters and cartoons) and war.

They discuss why and how does war matter to art, and art matter to war? What can we learn from studying art and artists about studying war in all its forms? What can we learn about the societal and cultural attitudes to war? What can art do for war and how can it be invoked for peace?