Photograph: Conflict, Time, Photography
Courtesy of The Tate Modern
This exhibition brings together history, politics, and art in a seamless transmission of time. Conflicts, not only those relating to war, have lasting effects on the visual landscape as well as via the people that lived through them. This exhibition begins with an introduction detailing the author Kurt Vonnegut, Jr and Slaughterhouse-five and his response to the bombing of the city of Dresden. This provides the viewer with a poignant starting point as it took Vonnegut nearly 24 years after the bombing to publish Slaughterhouse-five. The panel provides a quote from the book that creates a thought-provoking introduction into the exhibition,
"People aren't supposed to look back. I'm certainly not going to do it anymore. I've finished my war book now. The next on I write is going to be fun. This one is a failure, and had to be, since it was written by a pillar of salt." -Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. Slaughterhouse-five
Dresden After Allied Raids, Germany 1945
Photography by: Richard Peter
SLUB Dresden/ Deutsche Fotothek / Richard Peter, sen.
Perhaps one of the most iconic images of the exhibition is "Dresden After Allied Raids, Germany 1945" by Richard Peter. The wholesale destruction of Germany's cultural capital is often overlooked in media portrayal of the Second World War. A war that presents itself today as "Good versus Evil", is not necessarily as simple as what occurred. Both sides committed atrocities and this presents a different picture of the war as do the images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki of just how costly this war was and who was affected by it.
Looking at the past is necessary for this exhibition. Through the lens of photography, the viewer will see conflict through another's eyes. It faces the reality that there are those that cannot escape the trauma of the past as is with the case of those who suffer from shell-shock, PTSD, and the physical wounds of war. There are those that live with war through the departure of loved ones and the destruction of homes and livelihood. Conflict is not only that between countries, but inherently it is between people. It is not a past, but rather a continual present.
The exhibition looks at not a single conflict through the years, but rather many. The chronology of the exhibit ranges from the (First) Crimean War 1853-1856 to the Libyan revolution of 2011. There is a focus on wars between countries and internal conflicts. The presence of some of these images in a British national museum like the Tate Modern I found incredibly encouraging.
The representation of controversial images of Northern Ireland and former colonies express a degree of accountability and recognition. The museum as well as this exhibition in particular receives a great deal of support from the HM Government, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Arts Council England, so the apparent freedom of expression and potentially controversial presence of images should not be lost on the viewer, nor should the popularity and support be lost on those institutions.
What is most striking is that you would struggle to find go through this exhibit and not see at least one conflict you have either heard of or studied in the past. This is relevant for everyone as the chronology is such that we have all lived through at least one of these and it is difficult to not see the affects on society. Although the names change the visual effects are incredibly similar. The emotional damage is the same even though the place names change. By the end, the viewer is left with the impossible realization that humanity's ability to be cruel to one another leaves irreparable damage on the societal psyche.
The exhibit was curated by Simon Baker, Shoair Mavlian, and David Mellor and was a collaboration between the Tate Modern and Museum Folkwang, Essen and Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. The exhibit is open until the 15th of March 2015, and there will be a Curator's tour and private view on Monday the 23rd February 2015 from 18:30-20:30.
Shell Shocked US Marine, The Battle of Hue 1968
Photography by: Don McCullin
Printed 2013
The representation of controversial images of Northern Ireland and former colonies express a degree of accountability and recognition. The museum as well as this exhibition in particular receives a great deal of support from the HM Government, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Arts Council England, so the apparent freedom of expression and potentially controversial presence of images should not be lost on the viewer, nor should the popularity and support be lost on those institutions.
What is most striking is that you would struggle to find go through this exhibit and not see at least one conflict you have either heard of or studied in the past. This is relevant for everyone as the chronology is such that we have all lived through at least one of these and it is difficult to not see the affects on society. Although the names change the visual effects are incredibly similar. The emotional damage is the same even though the place names change. By the end, the viewer is left with the impossible realization that humanity's ability to be cruel to one another leaves irreparable damage on the societal psyche.
The exhibit was curated by Simon Baker, Shoair Mavlian, and David Mellor and was a collaboration between the Tate Modern and Museum Folkwang, Essen and Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden. The exhibit is open until the 15th of March 2015, and there will be a Curator's tour and private view on Monday the 23rd February 2015 from 18:30-20:30.
