Photo taken at the National World War I Museum in Kansas City in June 2009. Trench art or folk art such as seen here was made by soldiers "killing time" in France during World War I. These are all American US Army mess kits. These and other similar items have been donated to the museum since it was dedicated in 1921. Please ZOOM for detailed viewing. Bill:) Added background: The First World War, 'The Great War', 'The War to End All Wars' or 'The War for Civilization' as it was variously called, evolved into a stagnant form of 'trench warfare' after the initial German invasion into Belgium in 1914. Prolonged entrenchment of troops and a vast supply of the detritus of war provided an ever-expanding canvas for the talents of soldier-artists. Decorated objects made from 1914 throughout the post-war period are generally referred to as 'trench art'. Trench art is a highly evocative term conjuring up the image of a mud-spattered soldier in a soggy trench hammering out a souvenir for a loved one at home while dodging bullets and artillery shells. This is an appealing but very false conception of the reality of this art form. A few types of trench art (finger rings made from melted down aluminum are a good example) could be made easily in a trench during lulls in the fighting, but the hammering involved in making many trench art pieces would have been greeted with unwelcome hostile fire from the enemy. Trench art items made during the war were in fact created at a distance from the front line trenches either by soldiers 'at rest' behind the front lines, by skilled artisans among the civilian population, by prisoners of war, or by soldiers convalescing from wounds as handicraft therapy. Sorce: Jane Kimball's book, Trench Art: An Illustrated History, 1989 and 2005.