When the Canadian exhibition of official First World War photographs travelled from Britain to North America in 1917, it was acclaimed in the press for its ability to bring the war home. The photographs felt lifelike in size and immediacy. Audience members in four Canadian cities reportedly recognized the faces of loved ones. The centrepiece of the exhibition was a huge photographic print showing Canadians bursting from a trench, bayonets raised. If audiences wanted to know what war looked like, this was it.
I’m shocked!
