WW1 Baseball Art

[benjulmag]

I thought I would share a baseball painting painted by the European artist, Rene-Xavier Prinet c. 1917. It depicts a baseball game being played by US soldiers in France during WW1. During the war our government shipped several hundred thousand baseball bats to soldiers stationed overseas to help relieve the stress of war. It is reported most Army, Navy and Marine Corps had teams, and the American military created 77 baseball diamonds in France. This is the only baseball painting I have seen painted in Europe during this period by a European artist. Needless to say, the artist was lacking in knowledge of certain aspects of where players are positioned, but I think it is a very interesting image. It is an oil, the painting having dimensions of 25 1/2" by 36 1/2". The inscription on the frame reads Rrene Xavier Prinet, 1st Match de Baseball - France, October 1917.