My friend’s grandfather was an artist, and during the war he was conscripted and put in charge of designing camouflages. When we were recently working on a project to do with camouflage as an interiors inspiration, I remembered this, and down the Google rabbit hole I went.

Where I ended up was with Dazzle, a First World War camouflage that was also developed by conscripted peacetime artists, notably Norman Wilkinson. These artists were steeped in Modernism and Cubism and the design they created, intended to confuse rather than mask, shows obvious influences from these movements.

The camouflage found fame after the war, with Chelsea Arts Club hosting a Dazzle Ball at the Royal Albert Hall in 1919. A reporter at the time joked that it was hard to plot the course of the women on the dancefloor…

And of course I hardly need point out how prevalent the black and white chevron is in today’s interiors trends. But I will, in the following little photo montage:

You may have heard a little about Dazzle in the news recently too, with historic ships being repainted in Dazzle to commemorate the Centenary of WWI. For more images of Dazzle, and buildings, art and fashion inspired by it, check out our Pinterest Dazzle board. If you can find it…