Razzle Dazzle Ships

During WWI German U-Boats were very effective at sinking enemy ships be they military or commercial. The Navy tried different color schemes but due to the ever changing sky and water what was camouflage one day made them stand out even more the next. Enter British Artist and naval officer Norman Wilkinson who created the Dazzle Camouflage or Razzle Dazzle as it was know in the United States. The technique used bright colors and contrasting diagonal lines to make it hard for the U-Boats to judge the size and speed of the ship. Although the photos are all in black and white the ships were very bright and colorful. In a way what Wilkinson did was turn these War Ships into floating pieces of Cubist art.