Dazzle

The contemporary ‘dazzle ships’ paying tribute to the innovative First World War camouflage have become familiar to millions.

WW1 Dazzle Ship, Imperial War Museum Archive, 1918, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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Dazzle Ship Series

Inspired by the experimental naval camouflage developed in 1917 by Norman Wilkinson, five contemporary artists transformed real-life ships in the UK and USA.

Dazzle Liverpool, Mark McNulty, 2014, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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The contemporary ‘Dazzle Ships’ moored on the rivers of Liverpool, Edinburgh, London and New York have been admired by millions since the first ship was launched in 2014.

Dazzle Ship, Scotland, Jeff Mitchell, 2016, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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LDF-Dazzle (2018) by Andy Stagg14-18 NOW

What is Dazzle? 

The idea of “dazzle” - a camouflage painted on to the surface of ships - was pioneered by British artist Norman Wilkinson, who prepared numerous designs for vessels targeted by enemy U-boats.

WW1 Dazzle Ship (1918) by Imperial War Museum Archive14-18 NOW

The geometrically patterned boats would have been a familiar sight during the First World War, when hundreds of shipping convoys sailed to and from Britain’s ports.

WW1 Dazzle Ship (1918) by Surgeon Oscar Parkes14-18 NOW

Dazzle Ferry (2015) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

Though the practice has largely (but not entirely) fallen out of fashion in the military, ‘dazzle’ remains a source of inspiration to artists today.

Dazzle Ship, London- Tobias Rehberger (2015) by Chris Wainwright14-18 NOW

Tobias Rehberger Dazzle Ship London 

31 July 2014 – End of 2015

Dazzle Ship London by Tobias Rehberger. A time lapse film of the installation by David Kew.14-18 NOW

Dazzle Ship, London- Tobias Rehberger, Chris Wainwright, 2015, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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HMS President (1918) is one of only three surviving Royal Navy warships from the First World War.

Dazzle Ship, London- Tobias Rehberger, Chris Wainwright, 2015, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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This eye-catching vessel reminds Londoners and visitors of the crucial role ships played in the country’s wartime survival.

Dazzle Ship London by Tobias Rehberger. A film by David Kew.14-18 NOW

Dazzle Liverpool (2014) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

Carols Cruz-Diez Dazzle Ship Liverpool

12 June 2014 – 1 December 2015 

Dazzle Liverpool, Mark McNulty, 2014, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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Carlos Cruz-Diez is one of the great figures of contemporary art, famous for his use of light, colour and movement in kinetic and optical art.

Dazzle Liverpool, Mark McNulty, 2014, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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Dazzle Ferry (2015) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

Peter Blake        Dazzle Ferry

 2 April 2015                               

Dazzle Ferry (2015) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

14-18 NOW and Tate Liverpool co-commissioned one of the major figures of British pop art, Sir Peter Blake, to ‘dazzle’ a Mersey Ferry in partnership with Mersey travel and National Museums Liverpool.

Dazzle Ferry (2015) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

Dazzle Ferry (2015) by Mark McNulty14-18 NOW

The ferry was the first of the Dazzle Ship commissions to be a working vessel.

Dazzle Ship, Scotland (2016) by Ross Attenburgh14-18 NOW

Ciara Phillips  Dazzle Ship Scotland

25 May 2016 – 31 January 2017  

Dazzle Ship Scotland by Ciara Phillips14-18 NOW

Dazzle Ship, Scotland, Ross Attenburgh, 2016, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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The fourth ship in the Dazzle Ship Series, titled Every Woman, by the Turner Prize-nominated artist Ciara Phillips.

Dazzle Ship New York (2018) by Nicholas Knight14-18 NOW

Tauba Auerbach Dazzle Ship New York

1 July 2018 – 12 May 2019

Dazzle Ship Series: Flow Separation by Tauba Auerbach14-18 NOW

Dazzle Ship New York, Nicholas Knight, 2018, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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The artist transformed a decommissioned fireboat into a floating artwork.

Dazzle Ship New York, Nicholas Knight, 2018, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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Auerbach’s dazzle incorporates the movement and behaviour of water into its design.

LDF-Dazzle (2018) by Andy Stagg14-18 NOW

Pentagram     Dazzle

15 – 23 September 2018  

LDF-Dazzle, Andy Stagg, 2018, From the collection of: 14-18 NOW
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The Creative Studio at the V&A was “dazzled” throughout the nine days of London Design Festival by design studio Pentagram.

LDF-Dazzle (2018) by Andy Stagg14-18 NOW

Pentagram’s design abstracted the letterforms and words of the Wilfrid Wilson Gibson poem “Suspense” as its source.

Credits: Story

Dazzle Ship series co-commissioned with Liverpool Biennial.
Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions (listed below) who have supplied the content.
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Armistice Day
Commemorating the end of the First World War
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