En somme ca n’est que du ‘materiel humain.’ c. 1914 - 1919

Jean-Louis Forain’s drawing, made in France during the First World War, depicts a soldier leading a distraught civilian through a field of graves. The work powerfully encapsulates the sense of loss and dehumanization that permeated the conflict. Forain was working as a propaganda artist, attached to the French army. But the image complicates any straightforward idea of nationalistic fervor. The emotion of the civilian is emphasized by the artist's use of chiaroscuro. The graffito-like crosses, stretching into the distance, reinforce the sheer scale of the devastation. The title, ‘In short it is only ‘human material’, suggests a horrifying indifference to human life on the part of those in command. To fully understand the drawing, we can research the history of wartime propaganda, and the changing attitudes towards the war. In doing so we can better appreciate how this artwork, while serving a public role, also offers a potent critique of the social and political structures of its time.