Articles & Resources

Books, articles, blog posts, and online discussions related to t-wall murals, war graffiti, deployment art, and more:

  1. Ahmed, Shkar. "Fifteen years of blast barriers in Iraq with a Kurdish twist". Rudaw News. 15DEC2018. 

  2. Armstrong,M. C.  “Facts from Iraq: The Chuck Norris Archive" May 2, 2016
    1. "Graffiti is one of the oldest methods of communication. According to Kohn and Rosenberg, graffiti remains an extremely popular genre of communication because it is viewed as “raw and spontaneous,” focused “mainly on messages of violence, sex, and gender” (610). In a war zone, graffiti can offer unique insights into the minds of men and women whose freedom of expression is otherwise severely curtailed. While embedded with a Joint Special Operations Force in 2008, I had the opportunity to witness the folk art of American soldiers and contractors. As I traveled from Kuwait City to Haditha, Iraq, I documented a range of graffiti in offices and latrines: drawings of flags and genitals, limericks about politicians, mothers, and musicians, and advice for new soldiers from those about to leave the theater of war. “Facts from Iraq”: The Chuck Norris Archive will frame and, for many readers, introduce one of the dominant graffiti tropes of Operation Iraqi Freedom: Chuck Norris.

      What is The Chuck Norris Archive? In short, it is a compilation and contextualization of Chuck Norris “facts.” What is a Chuck Norris “fact”? A Chuck Norris fact is, in most cases, an anti-fact, a pithy one to three sentence myth concerning the feats of Chuck Norris, a man who may well go down as the comic muse of the Global War on Terror. Focused on the Rosetta Stone of Chuck Norris “facts,” a poster of post-its I photographed at CPIC (Combined Press Information Center) in Baghdad, this digital archive hopes to inspire a conversation about the CPIC poster and other sites of Norris folk art from Operation Iraqi Freedom and the ongoing war in Afghanistan.  By offering a contextualization of certain “facts,” it is my hope that new “facts” and new interpretations will come to light, and that through this process we may be able to better answer questions like: In what ways does graffiti serve as an interdisciplinary lens into the Global War on Terror? What does the graffiti of a particular war tell us about that war and its warriors? What does the popularity of Chuck Norris tell us about American popular culture at a particular moment in history? And to what extent does Chuck Norris offer us a transcendent story of laughter and forgiving, a unique glimpse of the intersection between terror and comedy?"

    2. https://thechucknorrisarchive.weebly.com/facts-from-iraq-the-archive.html

  3. Ball, James. " T-Walls Of Joint Base Balad (LSA Anaconda), Iraq 2009-2010". 2016. https://www.t-wallsofjointbasebalad.com/contact.html
    1. 'The idea for this book was conceived soon after landing in Joint Base Balad, Iraq. I was one member of a Red Cross team sent to Balad to deliver emergency communications between the families at home and deployed service members. The book is designed to be searched for military units and the names of service members on the wall. Each page of a T-Wall contains the photograph and any unit names or names of servicemembers; these are written below each photograph. This text is searchable. The book is free. I have added the table of contents for anyone to see if their T-wall is included in the book.'

  4. Bicker, Phil. "Afghanistan's Graffiti Wars". Time Magazine. 22NOV2010. https://time.com/3774897/afghanistans-graffiti-wars/
    1. While the Taliban images take the form of tableaux, the American drawings are more intricate and graphic, stylistically referencing tattoo art. The work of the British deployment is much less complex. One piece simply counts enemy killed in action in the most basic form of bunched and crossed-through strokes, while another reflects the comforts of home in its depiction of a television playing the long-running soap opera Coronation Street.

      The artwork has more recently been augmented with chalk graffiti by the U.S. Female Engagement Team of the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, which is now based at Musa Qala. Its pastel artwork incorporates childhood motifs, including flowers, butterflies, rainbows and hearts, along with statements like “Miss You Guys” that reflect the melancholy of being far from home. These Marines have been in Musa Qala since March 2010, when they took over from British troops. Security has improved in the district center, but the surrounding area is still a Taliban stronghold. The older graffiti serves as a reminder of a constant threat.

  5. Cable, Dana SSG. "New concrete canvas chronicles 407th AEG’s history [Image 1 of 4]". DVIDS. May 2018.

  6. The Canadian Press. "Memorial to fallen Canadian soldiers buried at Afghan base". The Hamilton Spectator. 9JUN2011. https://www.thespec.com/news/canada/2011/06/09/memorial-to-fallen-canadian-soldiers-buried-at-afghan-base.html
    1. MA’SUM GHAR, AFGHANISTAN A symbol of Canadian blood and sacrifice, etched into the crusted hillside of a forward operating base in Kandahar for nearly 4½ years, is being buried and left behind in Afghanistan as the end of Canada’s combat mission draws ever nearer. The Maple Leaf rock mural at Ma’sum Ghar started as a tribute to five soldiers killed during the landmark battle of Pashmul, known as Operation Medusa.

  7. Cavallaro, Gina. "Saving Troops' War Zone Art". Army Magazine. August 2022.

  8. Curry, Johnny- Joint Combat Camera Center Iraq 2011. "T-walls on Contingency Operating Base Adder"

    1. A T-wall on Contingency Operating Base Adder, Iraq, Oct. 9, 2011. All of the T-wall art on COB Adder was painted by military and civilian personnel during Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation New Dawn. (Photo by Spc. Johnny Curry). 26 Photos.

  9. Doctrine Man, "Canvases of Concrete: T-Wall Art in the Global War on Terror." 2023.
    1. T-Walls, or so-called "Texas" walls or barriers, get their name due in part to their size, in comparison to the "Jersey" barriers that often line roadways here and abroad. Made of varying thicknesses of concrete, and generally standing between five to fifteen feet high, they appear as an inverted "T," and are deployed as prefabricated, modular barriers that can be set down next to each other to a desired distance.

      T-Walls were employed throughout key areas in Kuwait, Iraq, and Afghanistan as both protective and containment assets, soon after the Global War on Terror began. T-Walls proved to be one of the most effective forms of defense against mortar and rocket attacks. And, like soldiers from time immemorial, America's military and civilian personnel added a bit of "soldierly" art to these bare concrete walls, much like trench signage from World War I, Kilroy depictions and airplane nose art from World War II, and transport ship bunk art from the Vietnam War.

      Most T-Wall art was authorized official unit designations. Some were painted as competitions within deployed units, for which the winners were recognized at formations. Regardless, T-Wall art quickly became an expression of unit cohesiveness, of espirit-de-corps, making a unit's time in theater and its role within the larger operation, while other were dedicated as memorials to fallen comrades.

      These examples are only a fraction of the T-Walls painted by the nation's deployed Soldiers during the Global War on Terror.

  10. Duong, Tong SrA. "T-Wall Art: Beauty in the eye of the beholder." Balad Air Base. DVIDS. May 2011.

  11. Dyhouse, Janie. "Murals Document Life in the War Zone". VFW Magazine. JUL2020. 
    1. Warmurals.com is like an online museum dedicated to preserving the artwork that troops painted on boundary walls during the Global War on Terrorism. Here's the story of one such veteran artist and the vet who launched the site. 

  12. Farrell, Stephen. "In Kurdistan, Brisk Business in Blast Walls". New York Times. 11MAR2008. 

  13. Finoki, Bryan. "In the Business of Blast Walls.". Blogspot page: Subtopia A Field Guide to Military Urbanism. 5 April 2008.
     
  14. Forsyth, Jared SPC. "Camp Virginia T-wall art [Image 1 of 27]". DVIDS. September 2011

  15. Franco, Nathan- Joint Combat Camera Center Iraq 2011. T-wall art of Contingency Operation Station Echo.
    1. Military and civilian members have painted a number of T-walls on Contingency Operation Station Echo in Diwaniyah province, Iraq. This photo was taken Aug. 17, 2011. All of the artwork was completed during Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation New Dawn. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Nathan Franco). 11 Images.

  16. Franco, Nathan- Joint Combat Camera Center Iraq 2011. "T-walls at COS Kalsu [28 Images]". 
    1. Military and civilians members have painted a number of T-walls on Contingency Operating Site Kalsu in Babil province. This photo was taken July 12, 2011. All of the artwork was completed during Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation New Dawn. (Photo by: Spc. Nathan Franco).
    2. T-wall art [Image 1 of 5]
  17. Glenn, Jonathan. "Combat Curator: Images and art from Iraq and Afghanistan". Facebook page. Last updated in 2012.
    1. Jonathan Glenn is a former military officer known for his passion for creativity and appreciation of the arts. During his deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan he used photography as a tool to record his perception of the juxtaposition of beauty and conflict in the world around him in places both unfamiliar and uncomfortable. Jon has cataloged the unit art painted to represent the comradery and esprit de corps that is essential to military unit cohesion. The art is painted on the concrete “T-walls” designed to protect and preserve life inside while at the same time remaining a constant barrier to the dangers of the unknown and routinely hostile world all around. The paintings represent the boisterous boldness of troops moving into battle that is all too often replaced after months of repetition and separation by complacency, loneliness and a mundane disregard toward ones own surroundings both known and unknown, those loved or hated, some cherished some feared.

  18. Groeger, Lena. "On Iraq's Walls, the Graffiti of War". Wired Magazine. 19JUN2011. https://www.wired.com/2011/06/iraqs-graffiti-of-war/
    1. U.S. forces are scheduled to depart Iraq in December. But on the giant concrete barriers that still ring the constellations of bases around the country, their artistic footprint will remain. Over the past eight years, all around Iraq, troops turned the jersey barriers and t-walls designed to protect them from insurgent attacks into concrete canvases.
    2. Photos from the Graffiti of War Project 2011


  19. The Graffiti of War Project.
    1. We have spent almost ten years collecting these images through submissions to our website, on social media and via email. We also organized an expedition to Kuwait and Iraq to embed with US Forces ahead of the withdraw of troops in 2012. During this almost month-long effort, our team was able to document over 2,000 images, raise awareness of the mission and interview dozens of warfighters, civilians and local nationals, but the journey continues.

  20. Hauer, George. "Two Scoops of Hooah!: The T-Wall Art of Kuwait and Iraq". Hardcover coffee table book published by Schiffer Military History. 28JUN2015.
    1. Within the pages of this book you will see how cement structures, intended for barriers, are transformed into pictorial walls that identify military units and honor service members who gave their lives for freedom in the Gulf War. They provide an esprit de corps for their unit members who are forward deployed from their home base, post, or camp. The unit colors and insignias displayed on these walls become the thoughts and memories of the men and women who have fought, and for those who have died for freedom. Memorial walls proclaim in silence the ultimate sacrifice of service. This artwork represents Coalition Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Coast Guard, and D.O.D. Civilians who answered the call of freedom and deployed far from home and family. When these walls decay and are turned to rubble, this book will become a lasting legacy to those who have served in Kuwait and Iraq. ($29.99 in 2021)
    2. George Hauer is the Co-Founder of Operation: Music Aid, the supplier of over 2,400 new instruments to wounded soldiers and vets. Robin Whitney is a freelance writer and a long time resident of Madison, CT.

  21. Hutcheson, John. "Barrier art creates bold statement for medical group". 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs. 1JUN2006. https://www.af.mil/News/Features/Display/Article/143642/barrier-art-creates-bold-statement-for-medical-group/
    1. For Colonel Taylor, the mural was more than just a chance to leave a legacy that past, present and future medics at Balad could be proud of. Painting it was a chance to break away from the hustle and bustle of the hospital for an hour or two at a time and recharge his batteries. “It was the first painting I've done in 12 years, and it was therapeutic for me,” said the colonel, a medical architect and healthcare administrator by trade. “It was my escape.” He also found that members of the medical group would stop to ask him about the mural and talk to him about how things were going, conversations that may never have happened if he were hard at work in his office.

  22. Hutsell, Loren.  "American Military Barrier War Paint, Camp Buehring, Kuwait 2009: A Discovery of Troop Identity, Values, and Warfighting Attributes as They Deployed into Combat for Operation Iraqi Freedom". US Army Command and General Staff College. 21MAY2014. https://www.warmurals.com/hutsellwarpaintthesis

    1. Abstract : During Operation Iraqi Freedom, American troops painted artistic murals on large transportable concrete barriers that protected them from enemy combatants. The murals provide an avenue to understand how troops and their units perceived themselves and missions during the war.

      This thesis researches the barriers painted at the staging and embarkation Camp Buehring, Kuwait, to discover troop identity, values, and warfighting attributes as they deployed into combat. The research is conducted through study of 200 barrier photographs personally taken by the author from February 15th-20th, 2009. The barrier murals are significant because they capture a moment in time and record valuable history about American Service members and the military community. The murals reveal truths proclaimed not by others, but by the very troops who deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

      Consequently, the values and motivations that sustain an American Service member in combat are disclosed. Further, the barriers are not only a memorial of military personnel deployed to war, but a record of national history. As such, it is critical that our national and military leaders act swiftly in documentation and preservation of these barriers to fully benefit from their value.

  23. Johnson, Casey Garret. Afghan Graffiti- How a Street Art Campaign in Kandahar City Got under the Taliban's Skin. Foreign Policy, 4 Apr. 2014, https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/04/04/afghan-graffiti/.

  24. Johnson, Richard. The Joe Bonham Project - National Museum of the Marine Corps Blog (usmcmuseum.com) 11/6/2019.
    1. Project founded by Combat Artist and Chief Warrant Officer Michael (Mike) D. Fay. Dedicated to sketching and documenting the grueling journeys of American soldiers who survive the harrowing terrors of combat but do not survive “intact.” The art depicts, with sobering intensity, the challenges for the soldiers who survive. 
  25. Johnson, Robert. "This Analyst Turned Army Medic Started A Creative Non-Profit To Help Other Vets Fight PTSD." Business Insider. 3SEP2011. https://www.businessinsider.com/jason-paersons-graffiti-of-war-ptsd-veterans-issues-help-2011-9

    1. The idea began with when Jaeson Parsons thought back to the art-covered t-walls and Jersey barriers he'd left behind in Iraq. He put up a website calling for pictures, and the response was overwhelming. He took an expedition back, and collected hundreds of images before they were lost forever. Now the artwork is pouring in, forming a bond among veterans, but also conveying the violent, life-changing trauma of war to the people who weren't there.


  26. Jones, Christoper. "On Sale in Kabul: Mementos of America’s War in Afghanistan, for $2 or Less". New York Times- At War Blog. 2019.
    1. "I asked the shopkeeper where his stash of coins came from. He told me people bring them in to pawn, especially in the winter when money is scarce and buying wood and coal for heat becomes an urgent necessity. [...] The coins were sometimes presented to Afghans as a token of appreciation for their work as interpreters or contractors. But as the contracts dried up, hundreds of thousands of Afghans who relied on them for employment lost their livelihoods. Meaningless trinkets from American military officers who never knew their names must have been easy objects to part with. Afghans need bread, and you can’t eat souvenir coins."
  27. Katzenberg, Lauren. "The Art of War: Promote World Peace...Kill Everyone!". New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/22/magazine/war-graffiti-afghanistan-iraq.html
    1. 'This wall, which belonged to Uday Hussein, was tagged in Baghdad in 2004 to represent Third Platoon, as well as to convey a message to new arrivals: “We were here, we fought here.”

  28. Keeton, Chief Petty Officer G. "Soldiers and Airmen build ship-like guard shack to bring the sea life to land". US Army Press Release by 3rd Sustainment Command Public Affairs. 28FEB2009. https://www.army.mil/article/17602/soldiers_and_airmen_build_ship_like_guard_shack_to_bring_the_sea_life_to_land?

  29. Lawrence, JP. "What happened to Pat Tillman’s jersey? Here’s how the last Americans at Bagram Airfield rushed to secure mementos." Stars and Stripes. 19JUL2021. https://www.stripes.com/theaters/middle_east/2021-07-19/bagram-airfield-memorials-afghanistan-withdrawal-pat-tillman-2190667.html
    1. A steel beam from the World Trade Center, donated to Bagram as a memorial, became a concern after no one could initially remember where it went. They eventually learned it had been relocated in 2015 to Fort Drum, N.Y. Much of the work done by several people during the final stretch was “sanitizing” Bagram. “We pulled off stickers, signs went down,” said Kimberly Culverhouse-Steadman, who came to Bagram in February to close the USO and bring back its mementos. “They just didn’t want anything reminiscent of American presence.”

  30. Lingle, Brandon. "Stenciled Relief for Forward Operating Base Monotony" AUGUST 21, 2012
    Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan
    1. 'Stencil art — one of the oldest art forms — seems a perfect fit for the military, a subculture focused on uniformity and limits. Well-defined rules govern life for service members within the base perimeter. Often associated with protest movements and adrift between free-form graffiti and sanctioned signage, it is a subversive form caught within borders. The very edges that seek to restrain actually form the art. These boundaries also ask to be broken. With stencils, conformity becomes liberating.'
    2. Webcache Copy Backup

  31. Mariette, Sydney. "Honoring the fallen: A chaplain’s account of preserving memorials". Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve.23AUG2020. https://www.dvidshub.net/news/376624/honoring-fallen-chaplains-account-preserving-memorials
    1. On August 23, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve transferred Camp Taji, Iraq to the Government of Iraq and the Iraqi Security Forces. Amidst all the activity, two Coalition members inherited a delicate task. The base contains more than two dozen murals honoring the U.S. and international units previously residing on Camp Taji. Chaplain (Capt.) Joel Reynolds, and Sgt. Terri Faye Doughten, religious affairs specialist, deployed from the 168th Military Police Battalion, Tennessee Army National Guard, took on the unique mission of preserving the memorials found around Camp Taji.

  32. Matos, Nikko-Angelo-Franco- Joint Combat Camera Center Iraq 2011. "Forward Operating Base Warhorse T-wall art.
    1. Military and civilian members have painted a number of T-walls on Forward Operating Base Warhorse, Diyala, Iraq. This photo was taken on Aug. 19, 2011. All of the artwork was completed during Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation New Dawn. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Nikko-Angelo Matos/Released). 25 Images.

  33. MEMORIAL MAPPING: TRANSNATIONAL 9/11 MEMORIALS- UNIVERSITY OF NOTRE DAME AMERICAN STUDIES http://www.memorialmapping.com/

  34. Military Art Stencils tumblr page. Last updated 2MAY2013. https://militarystencils.tumblr.com/
    1. Many photos of war graffiti at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan as well as some from Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait.


  35. Military Wall Art Iraq Facebook Page. 2016.
    1. Small page featuring a collection of T-Walls from Joint Base Balad Iraq 2010.
    2. This is a place to see the Amazing Wall Art drawn by our service men and women, our allies and in a couple of cases our foe.

  36. Molin, P. (2023, January 1). GWOT soldier art. Time Now: The Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in Art, Film, and Literature. https://acolytesofwar.com/2023/01/01/gwot-soldier-art/

  37. Mueller, Travis CPT. "Painting a T-Wall [Image 1 of 5]". DVIDS. Camp Buehring, Kuwait. February 2021.

  38. Muldowney, Decca. "The archnemeses of war rugs
    War rugs are a traditional Afghan art — how’d a guy in Brooklyn end up with their copyright?". The Verge. 27JUN2022. https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/27/23177797/afghan-war-rugs-drone-imagery-copyright-dispute

  39. Muse, Amy. "T-wall barrier art in Kuwait". Amuse Creative Studio Blog. 15NOV2009. https://amymuse.me/2009/11/15/t-wall-barrier-art-in-kuwait/
    1. 'In Kuwait, the military base we are staying at has tall concrete barriers around all the buildings and tents to provide protection against attack. In the Army, we call them “T-Walls”. In Kuwait, units have painted them as a sort of memorial of their tour in the desert. They are everywhere and it is something that is quite unique to Kuwait.'

  40. Mussi, Tony. "Cement Sentinels stand silent Guard". US Army Press Release. 19JUN2011. https://www.army.mil/article/60013/cement_sentinels_stand_silent_guard
    1. 'Although they offer protection, they are often symbolic of a unit’s deployment. T-walls have become a medium to display unit “esprit-de-corps.” Many units paint the T-walls with their corps colors, mottos, mascots, and murals. Many of the murals painted on the T-walls show the pride Soldiers have in their unit. Many Soldiers reflect on previous deployments when viewing the murals as they travel along different routes in theatre. So prevalent are T-walls, that miniature T-walls are routinely presented as going away gifts to remind all of the surroundings.'

  41. Nordland, Rod. "FORWARD OPERATING BASE WARHORSE JOURNAL: Where Ghosts Are a Reassuring Presence to Those in Need of One". New York Times. 1SEP2009. https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/02/world/middleeast/02ghosts.html
    1. That is most strikingly the case at the Never Forget Garden Memorial here on the base, with its military aphorism: “All gave some, some gave all.” It started out in 2004 with a slab of slate propped up against a blast wall, listing the names of the 27 dead from the Fourth Infantry Division who died in 2003-04. Each new rotation kept the names of its dead, under division or regimental insignia.

  42. Pickett, Holly. "Proud, Painful Art on Baghdad’s Blast Walls". New York Times. 11JUN2010. https://archive.nytimes.com/atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/11/proud-painful-art-on-baghdads-blast-walls/
  43. Pierce, C. C. (2012, November 2). Seeing is Believing: War through the Eyes of a Combat Artist. National Endowment for the Arts Magazine, 8.

  44. Powers, Senior Airman Cheyenne. "The Warrior Wall". 355th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Press Release. 30OCT2015. https://www.dm.af.mil/Media/Article-Display/Article/666281/the-warrior-wall/
    1. With the approval of U.S. Air Force Reserve Lt. Col. Michael Fellows, the CASF executive officer at the time, Loalbo and her team of three planned the layout of the lounge, obtained furniture, cut out and painted wooden letters to spell Warrior Wall, the original title. They also painted the walls and provided pens for patients to write on the walls.

      "My vision was to have a blank canvas for them to graffiti and have fun with it," Loalbo said. "It really took on a life of its own after that."

      It wasn't until a year later that Loalbo and Fellows learned about the success of the Warrior Wall. A member from her team was sent on a second rotation to CASF where she took pictures of the walls and sent them to Loalbo. "Back then, each deployment rotation was four months and each group wants to make their mark," said Fellows. "It was a huge surprise when the rotation the following year sent us back the pictures. "We weren't sure if the next rotations would paint over the walls and do something else or not."

      For the next five years, patients along with visitors signed the walls, covering them with signatures, farewell messages, thank you notes and memories of their fallen comrades on the lounges walls.

    2. Balad Warrior Wall Facebook Page.

    3. As of 2021, the Wall is on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force in Ohio.

  45. Rawlings, Nate. "Capturing the Architecture of War Before It's Gone". Time Magazine. 13OCT2011. https://time.com/3781723/capturing-the-buildings-of-war-before-theyre-gone/
    1. Because of their temporary construction, these outposts aren’t likely to survive, as Hadrian’s Wall and Masada, which beckon visitors as remnants of ancient war. That is why photographs are so important—to document how the first war of the 21st century was waged, with the most sophisticated weaponry, often utilized from fortifications that have changed little throughout the centuries.

  46. Riggins, Nash. "10 striking images of graffiti in Kandahar: On cement blockades throughout Kandahar, members of the military defy orders to make art". Salon Magazine. 5JAN2014. https://www.salon.com/2014/01/05/10_striking_images_of_graffiti_in_kandahar/
    1. 'When James Toler left the command center after his first stint in Kandahar, he says the newly constructed walls were quite plain – a few odd spray-painted, army-approved company insignias, nothing more. Yet as he began to come and go over the decade that followed, the officer noticed the city’s bland, bullet-riddled walls began to transform into an urban canvas.'

  47. Roza, David. "A former Army Guardsman is documenting the murals troops left behind during the Global War on Terror". Task & Purpose. 30DEC2019. https://taskandpurpose.com/news/iraq-war-murals-army-website/ 
    1. 'Many of those murals are now fading away, eroding under the hot desert sun, and that's part of the reason why Strand started a website to document photos of T-Wall art from GWOT bases. His website, WarMurals.com, features hundreds of photos of murals painted at Camp Buehring, as well as bases in Iraq such as Sather Air Force Base, Forward Operating Base Warhorse, Contingency Operation Station Echo and Contingency Operating Site Kalsu.'

  48. Sanders, Alexandra. "Madison man's book celebrates soldiers' T-wall art in Kuwait, Iraq". New Haven Register 28MAR2011. https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/Madison-man-s-book-celebrates-soldiers-T-wall-11553086.php#photo-13449336
    1. 'George Hauer's book "The T-Walls of Kuwait and Iraq," which documents the grafitti and artwork made by soldiers in the field. Different units each decorate the "T-walls," which surround the base at Camp Buehring.'

  49. Santana, Rebecca (Associated Press). "Honoring the dead: US saves war memorials in Iraq". The San Diego Union Tribune. 29MAY2010. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-honoring-the-dead-us-saves-war-memorials-in-iraq-2010may29-story.html
    Honoring the dead: US saves war memorials in Iraq - Boston.com 

  50. Saunders, Nicholas. "Trench Art: materialities and memories of war". Published by Routledge (originally published by Berg, 2003).
    1. Article: "Trench Art: the Art of War". Minerva Magazine 2022.

  51. Sim, David. "Afghanistan: Lucas Jackson\'s photos of abandoned areas of Bagram Airfield". International Business Times. https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/afghanistan-lucas-jacksons-photos-abandoned-areas-bagram-airfield-1482114

  52. Slovensky, Andrew- 362nd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment and DIVIDS. "COB Adder demuralized, graffiti preserved by photos."
    1. COB ADDER, Iraq - The murals on Contingency Operating Base Adder are disappearing. Almost overnight, many of the tall, concrete barriers featuring graffiti artwork received a fresh coat of white paint.

      Deployed service members have often designed murals on t-walls around U.S. bases in Iraq. The paintings illustrated everything from unit affiliations, military vehicles and equipment, mythological and historic figures, ranks, names, and anything else that flowed from the creative minds of the artists.

      In preparation for the departure of U.S. troops from Iraq, soldiers have been asked to paint over the murals, said Sgt. Maj. Charles Rosado, 25th Infantry Division Tactical Command Post non-commissioned officer in charge. “Painting over the murals is part of giving the installation back to Iraq.”

      As U.S. troops leave Iraq, they will not be creating new murals. Although new coats of paint will obscure the murals on COB Adder and other installations in Iraq, they will be remembered through photography, and shared with the people who supported the efforts from home.

  53. Spencer, John. " The Most Effective Weapon on the Modern Battlefield is Concrete". Modern War Institute at West Point. 14NOV2016. https://mwi.usma.edu/effective-weapon-modern-battlefield-concrete/
    1. 'Ask any Iraq War veteran about Jersey, Alaska, Texas, and Colorado and you will be surprised to get stories not about states, but about concrete barriers. Many soldiers deployed to Iraq became experts in concrete during their combat tours. Concrete is as symbolic to their deployments as the weapons they carried. No other weapon or technology has done more to contribute to achieving strategic goals of providing security, protecting populations, establishing stability, and eliminating terrorist threats'.

  54. Spiegel, Brendan. "Tagging the Battlefield". Photos courtesy James Toler. 11NOV2013. https://narratively.com/tagging-the-battlefield/
    1. In the war camps of Kandahar, antsy young soldiers turn security barriers into street art. The command culture calls it vandalism, but one senior Army vet sees poetry.


  55. Spiegel- Culture. "Art against Terror: The Wall Painters of Baghdad". 28APR2007.
    1. The fiercely controversial walls of protection and separation in Baghdad have been discovered by a group of artists as a substitute for canvas. Throughout the war-torn city, they are painting the concrete walls that are supposed to separate Sunnis and Shiites and reduce blast radii.

  56. Strand, Eric. "Losing Our History in the Age of Information - The War Murals Project". Lethal Minds Journal. July 2022. 

  57. Strauss, Bob. "The Story Behind the Phrase "Kilroy Was Here" ". Thought Co. 11MAR2019. https://www.thoughtco.com/killroy-was-here-4152093

  58. Toler, James. "Kandahar Tags: Modern Art from the Battlefield". Cargocollective.com . OCT2013. https://cargocollective.com/jtoler/Kandahar-Tags-Modern-Art-from-the-Battlefield
    1. While working in Kandahar Afghanistan from 2011-13, I was afforded the opportunity to view some Great Tag Artist work. For most Tag’s, the artists were not able to claim their work. The overseeing command climate did not look at Tag’s as Art, only as Graffiti and not to be tolerated. To me it was an Art Show, a display of the Soldiers defiance to the current situation and confines… I have displayed this so I can share the innate fact that Art in all forms, is a form Therapy for some people faced with adversity and traumatic events.

  59. Toler, Pamela. "How Afghanistan's 'Rugs of War' Helped its citizens tell the story of conflict." HistoryNet. 13APR2021.
    1. Decades of armed conflict in Afghanistan have transformed the iconography of one of the country’s traditional art forms

  60. T Wall Art of Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan by Military Service Members.
    1. Small 2012 Facebook page featuring a collection of T-wall art 
    2. 'It became a tradition for military units to have an artist from their Unit to paint a T Wall to represent their Unit and to leave a record that they were there. It grew from the roots of "Kilroy was Here" in WWII. The T Walls were place in areas where the troops lived and worked on the camp or high value equipment to protect them from enemy attacks. The Art shows a diversity of talent and ingenuity of expression.'

  61. U.S. Army Center of Military History. (2009). Army artists look at the war on terrorism 2001 to the present Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, and the United States. https://history.army.mil/books/wot_artwork/WOTArtwork.pdf
    1. 85+ artworks from the US Army Art Program by 8 different artist.

  62. The War Murals Project Facebook Page.
    1. Lots of insightful and funny comments and discussion on the art and memorials.

  63. The War Murals Project Reddit Page. https://www.reddit.com/user/WarMurals/
    • Lots of insightful and funny comments and discussion on the art and memorials.
  64. Yassine, Dima. “What Do You Want to Become?” Art Against Violence in Iraq, Jadaliyya, 13 Dec. 2018, https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/38235.