Last chance to see Camouflage!

Posted on: 31/08/2010

Last chance to see Camouflage!

Ottawa, Ontario, August 31, 2010 — There are only a few days left to see the enormously popular Camouflage exhibition at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa. Join the more than 225,000 visitors who have learned all about camouflage as a military discipline, and how it became popular with civilians.

Camouflage explores how the art of military concealment and deception is a product of human imagination, artistic skill and scientific ingenuity, and how designs, applications and effectiveness have varied greatly over time. It also traces the assimilation of this military strategy into the civilian mainstream by way of anti-war protests and punk rock, to its appearance on high-fashion catwalks and store shelves. Art and design are important themes throughout the exhibition: artists in military service led the development and early evolution of camouflage, which intersects with Cubism, the avant-garde, Canada’s Group of Seven, protest movements and pop art.

The exhibition features more than 150 engaging and unique artifacts on loan from over 25 national and international institutions and private collections. Key pieces include: works of art by Andy Warhol and A.Y. Jackson; haute couture garments by eminent designers such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Yves Saint Laurent and Maharishi; clothing worn by Joe Strummer of The Clash; and a coat hand-painted by First World War camouflage pioneer Eugene Corbin with one of the first camouflage patterns. Also on display are model warships painted in “dazzle” patterns from the First World War; a replica of a 1917 observation post disguised as a fake tree; “Rupert,” a dummy paratrooper from the D-Day invasion; photographs of some of history’s greatest deceptions; and much, much more.

Camouflage is presented by the Canadian War Museum in partnership with the Imperial War Museum, London, England, and will close on September 6, 2010.

Media Information:

Chief, Media Relations
Canadian War Museum
Telephone: 819 776-7167

Media Relations Officer
Canadian War Museum
Tel.: 819 776-8607

Fax: 819 776-8623