The Cod Wars, a series of confrontations between Iceland and the UK overfishing rights in the North Atlantic, have been a topic of discussion for decades. However, the impact of this conflict on the fishing industry and the communities involved has often been overlooked. That's where the "Friends, Foes and Good Companions" exhibition comes in. This reportage artwork has been created by artist Olivier Kugler and writer Andrew Humphreys, commissioned by the Imperial War Museums – IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund in partnership with Our Big Picture and supported by Arts Council England. The exhibition r ..read more

Jason Davidson, producer/director and co-owner of the award winning production company Squeaky Pedal, shares his reflections on exploring the IWM film archive for a new TV series entitled Sunken Warships: Secrets from the Deep ..read more

Research has been undertaken into the story of Mabel Wulff, who born in Newport in Wales but lived for many years in Germany. In this blog post, Madeleine Resühr and Andrew Hemmings share details of Mabel's extraordinary life, which spanned the two world wars and beyond ..read more

Laura Nathan is a contemporary textiles artist and through the support of an Arts Council England artist development grant (DYCP), she is currently exploring family archives surrounding her grandparents’ Holocaust narratives. In this blog post, Laura shares her reflections on the project ..read more

When the British government introduced conscription in 1916, no-one anticipated that this would lead to large numbers of conscientious objectors (COs) being held in civilian prisons, much less that it would have significant consequences for prison reform. In this post, Dr Frances Hurd shares her research into this topic ..read more

In summer 2023, Imperial War Museums (IWM) worked with Art School Plus and The Brickworks Museum to offer an exciting commissioning opportunity to an early-career artist as part of the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund. The programme supports more than 20 cultural organisations from across the UK to commission ambitious new artworks inspired by the heritage of conflict, created by world-leading and emerging contemporary artists ..read more

2023 marks 60 years since the first Memorial Library dedicated to the 2nd Air Division of the 8TH Air Force of the United States Army Forces (USAAF) was opened in Norwich, Norfolk. Today the library retains the identity first envisaged for it – that of a living memorial, a place where there is a shrine to the dead and a daily exchange of American thoughts and ideals. In this blog post, Orla Kennelly of the American Library shares details on this unique memorial and library ..read more

This month, Walking with Ghosts returned to Folkestone Harbour Arm Station. The immersive outdoor artwork had a powerful impact on audiences last year when it premiered at the historic station where so many crossed to and from the battlefields during the First World War. In this blog post, Professor Helen Brooks from University of Kent reflects on the impact of this powerful commission, part of the IWM 14-18 NOW Legacy Fund programme ..read more

Britain’s entry into the Second World War in 1939 affected not only the island nation but also the many areas of the globe that formed its empire. In order to urge all her colonial subjects to contribute towards the war effort, colonial authorities used propaganda in the form of posters, films, and more. In this guest blog post, researchers Nihara De Alwis and Lara Wijesuriya share how posters were adapted and framed according to the colony and area in which they were to be used, to sell the ‘product’ of empire most successfully ..read more

Inspired by collections at Nottinghamshire Archives and Imperial War Museum, The Mother of Tension featured a group of talented young dancers from across the Midlands in a ground-breaking new Hip Hop dance theatre performance exploring themes of conflict through lived experiences. In this guest post, Ruth Imeson from Inspire: Culture, Learning and Libraries shares details of the historical collections that shaped the performance ..read more