Salon des Armees, poster advertising an exhibition of works by artists of the Front, 1916...

French propaganda poster showing a soldier holding a small wooden statue of winged victory that he has been carving. In 1916, the Ministry of Beaux-Arts and the Ministry of War promised artists serving in the war, that their work would be shown in official war exhibitions on the homefront. The government sponsored the Salon des Armées to show the work of the mobilized artist and this exhibition realized 60,000 francs. These proceeds supported not only needy artists at home but also the disabled. The striking contrast between the continuing French culture, even from within the trench, and the barbarianism of the Germans, was brought home by these exhibitions. This poster won first prize.