The Marne Advance at Vaux

Lester George Hornby

1918 · Etching · Drawings and Prints

Hornby was working as an artist in Europe when the war broke out. Beginning in 1916, he was fighting at the front, first with French troops and then with the American army. In this print, an airplane soars above troops who advance through a war-torn French village, led by horse-drawn carriages carrying equipment and supplies. Splintered trees lead to rows of shelled stone houses, some reduced to rubble, while in the background observation balloons hover in the sky. After the war, Hornby traveled through the French countryside sketching scenes he remembered from the war for the American Commission on Public Information.

Artist

Lester George Hornby

Date

1918

Medium

Etching

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of C. Otto von Kienbusch, 1977