WWI Art Exhibit

This painting, "Caudron Aeroplane Directing Artillery Fire Between the Argonne and Verdun," is part of an exhibit featuring artwork by Henri Farré, an observer-bombardier in the French Air Service during World War I who was considered to be the first aviation artist. Titled “Sky Fighters in France: World War I Aviation Art of Henri Farré,” the exhibit will open Sept. 22, 2014, and feature more than 30 pieces of artwork. (U.S. Air Force photo)

World War I art exhibit to open Sept. 22 at National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

Published Sept. 9, 2014
By Rob Bardua
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

DAYTON, Ohio -- An exhibit featuring artwork by the first aviation artist, Henri Farré, who served as an observer-bombardier in the French Air Service during World War I, will open Sept. 22 at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

Titled "Sky Fighters in France: World War I Aviation Art of Henri Farré," the exhibit will feature more than 30 paintings that capture both the danger and immediacy of aerial warfare.

Farré observed many aviation innovations, including armament advances and the evolution of night bombardment raids, and portrayed them in his art. His innovation was to depict flying from the aviator's point of view, and his "new" techniques formed the foundations of modern aviation art.

The paintings on display will be a small sample of more than 170 works of art that toured many large U.S. cities during and after WWI. Sponsored by the French government, the tour generated money to support war widows and orphans. Today, 69 of Farré's paintings are part of the U.S. Air Force Art Program collection - some of which are being loaned to the museum for this exhibit.

This free exhibit will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the museum's Hall of Honor through Sept. 7, 2015.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, is the world's largest military aviation museum. With free admission and parking, the museum features more than 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles and thousands of artifacts amid more than 17 acres of indoor exhibit space. Each year about one million visitors from around the world come to the museum. For more information, visit www.nationalmuseum.af.mil.

NOTE TO PUBLIC: For more information, please contact the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at (937) 255-3286.

NOTE TO MEDIA: For more information, please contact Rob Bardua at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Public Affairs Division at (937) 255-1386.

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