Inept Portrayals of Camouflage from World War I

Charles de Lacy (1919)

We ran across these recently. They are two illustrations from John S. Margerison, Our Wonderful Navy: The Story of the Sure Shield in Peace and War. London: Cassell and Co, Ltd (1919). The illustrations are the work of a British marine painter, probably not a camoufleur, named Charles John de Lacy (1856-1929). The one above is dramatically cropped, since the original image was twice as wide, spanning a two-page spread, with some of it lost in the binding. This is by far the better half. It shows a dazzle-painted American troopship being escorted by a convoy, but the dazzle pattern on the troop ship is absurdly simple-minded. Even more symmetrical,  redundant and predictable are the dazzle designs on what are said to be minesweepers in the illustration shown below. In both, the dazzle pattern is hardly confusing. Instead of obscuring the vessels' shapes, it articulates their physical form, making them even more readable. Interesting images, nevertheless.

Charles de Lacy (1919)

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