Abram Games: His Wartime Work

In 1946, Abram Games left the War Office armed with this testimonial:

‘His work had to be subtly persuasive, or directly “propagandist” – but it was always effective, compelling, and of outstanding quality.’

During the Second World War, Captain Games, holder of the unique title of ‘Official War Poster Artist’, designed a hundred posters for army use. The Ministry of Information adapted several designs for civilians. There is a tale to tell about many of these images, especially about his infamous but most successful ATS Blonde Bombshell recruiting poster. Being the son of a photographer, Games employed many ingenious photographic tricks to convey his message of ‘Maximum Meaning, Minimum Means’ in his designs.

Most books on Graphic Design have included images by Abram Games. This is the only book published that concentrates solely on Games’s war work. The Estate of Abram Games holds his large archive, which includes a memo from Churchill, personal correspondence, press cuttings, sketches, paintings, and maps for the Army Bureau of Current Affairs, and photographs from Games’s seven years in army service.