Photography has been described as the ‘spark of chance’ in
which particular moments, events and places are captured by
the photographer. It is the power of this medium to make
visible a fleeting moment, which secures photography a place
as a key form of modern art.
CHANCE
Fortuitous, Accidental, Random, Occur, Opportunity
Noun: If there is a chance of something happening, it is possible that it will happen.
Adjective: A chance meeting or event is one that is not planned or expected.
Verb: If you chance to do something or chance on something, you do it or find it although you had not planned or
tried to.
Something that happens by chance was not planned by anyone.
You can use by any chance when you are asking questions in order to find out
whether
something that you think might be true is actually true.
When you take a chance, you try to do something although there is a large risk of danger or failure.
Sourced: Google Dictionary
What does chance mean to you?
VCE Art
Unit 3 Area of Study 1
Students use the analytical frameworks to
interpret and analyse the meanings &
messages of artworks
WAR & CONFLICT
Photography has been described as the ‘spark of chance’ in which
particular moments, events and places are captured by the
photographer. It is the power of this medium to make visible a
fleeting moment, which secures photography a place as a key
form of modern art.
Pre 1970
Robert Capa
Margaret Bourke-White
Post 1970
Nick Ut
James Nachtwey
Margaret Bourke-White
• Born 1904 in New York
• Attended several universities throughout the US while pursing a degree
in Herpetology (study of reptiles)
• Bourke-White studied photography as a hobby from a young age
• One of the first female photojournalists and first western photographers
allowed into the Soviet Union
• Worked for Fortune and Life Magazines
• Deeply influenced by the impact of the Depression- which fueled her
interest in politics
• Wrote about & publicly demonstrated her commitment to social causes
• Died in 1971 of Parkinson's disease
Buchenwald Concentration Camp, 1945- German civilians tour Buchenwald Camp
Buchenwald Concentration Camp, 1945- The Living Dead of Buchenwald
Robert Capa
• Born in Budapest, Hungary in 1913
• 1931 studied Journalism in Berlin
• Recorded 5 wars: Spanish Civil War (1936-39), Japanese invasion of
China (1938), WW2 (1941-45), Israeli- Arab War (1948) and Indochina
(1954)
• Was twice a refugee- from Hungary & Nazi Germany
• Capa has written 4 books that capture his involvement in the wars
• His images often recorded the plight of displaced people
• Capa’s images reveal not only the mastery of the medium, but his
empathy and feeling of solidarity with the people he photographed
• He was killed by the very thing that he despised, yet lived for: War. He
was killed by a land mine in Indochina in 1954
Chartres, France, 1944- Liberation of the town: French woman who had
baby with a German soldier has her head shaved as punishment
a
Cerro Muriano, Cordoba front, 1936- Spanish Republican militiaman
Borrell Garcia falling to his death
Federico
Nick Ut (Ut Cong Huynh)
• Born in Vietnam
• Oldest brother, My Thanh Huynh, was an AP (Associated Press)
Photographer
• Ut began career with AP in Saigon in 1966 and covered the rest of the
Vietnam War
• Wounded 3 times
• Famous for the image of Kim Phuc running down Route 1, after a
misdirected napalm bomb was dropped on her family home.
Vietnam 1972- Kim Phuc running along Route 1 after she and her
were doused by Napalm
village
James Nachtwey
• American Photojournalist
• Studied History & Political Science at Dartmouth College (1966-70)
• Images from Vietnam War & American Civil rights movement had a
powerful effect on Nachtwey- influencing him to become a
photographer
• Began as a newspaper photographer
• First foreign assignment 1981 in Northern Ireland covering the IRA
hunger strike
• Since then he has devoted himself to documenting wars, conflicts and
critical social issues
• Nachtwey has photographed in Afghanistan, Romania, Bosnia, South
Africa, Rwanda, Indonesia and many more locations
Rwanda, 1994 - Survivor of Hutu death camp
Sudan, 1993 - Famine victim in a feeding center
http://www.ted.com/talks/james_nachtwey_s_searing_pictures_of_war.html
Preparation for Essay
Using the Comparative Handout:
Select ONE photograph pre 1970 and ONE photograph post 1970
COMPARE & CONTRAST the two images
Analyse the photographs according to the MEANINGS & MESSAGES
Use the analytical frameworks: FORMAL, CULTURAL, CONTEMPORARY,
PERSONAL
Essay Length 1000-1500 words
HOMEWORK complete the short answer questions to prepare for essay