The growth of media in the last century has played an integral role in shaping our beliefs, to a fault in many ways. In Susan Sontag’s Regarding the Pain of Others, she examines the effects of photography on public sentiment, specifically war imagery. The popular adage “A picture is worth a thousand words”, although quite cliché, is embodied throughout her writing. The notion that one picture can convey complex and sometimes multiple ideas that mere words cannot. This presentation briefly explores the origins of professional wartime photography, specifically during the Spanish Civil War, and mentions some key photographers who would pave the way for professional photography moving forward into World War II and beyond.
SPAIN. November 7th, 1938. Near Fraga, the Aragon front. Loyalist troops during an offensive on the Rio Segre.
The Spanish Civil War was a major event in Spanish and European history, introducing some of the major ideological conflict that would spread across Europe as the catalyst for World War II. Apart from being a major historical event, the Spanish Civil War would be the ground-zero for professional photography on the front lines of military combat. As Sontag states in an article in the New Yorker (December 9 2002), “the Spanish Civil War was the first war to be witnessed (‘covered’) in the modern sense: by a corps of professional photographers at the lines of military engagement and in the towns under bombardment, whose work was immediately seen in newspapers and magazines in Spain and abroad.” These photographers were present from the initial uprisings in 1936 to the collapse of the Republican government in 1939, putting themselves at risk on the front lines to disseminate these dramatic images around the world.
SPAIN. Cordoba front. Early September, 1936. Three Loyalist militiamen in a gully aiming rifles.
Photographer Robert Capa introduced in Picture Post as “the greatest war photographer in the world” captured arguably one of the most iconic photographs of the century titled “Death of a Loyalist Militiaman”. Robert Whelan in “Roberta Capa in Spain”, published by Aperture interprets the image stating, “The photograph is an overwhelmingly powerful statement of the human existential dilemma, as the solitary man is struck down by an unseen enemy, as if by Fate itself…the photograph is a haunting symbol of all the Republican soldiers who died in the war, and of Republican Spain itself, flinging itself bravely forward and being struck down.” Capa would later photograph some of the most iconic and graphic images of D-Day landings on Omaha Beach. French magazine Regards, in a time where French publications gave no credit to photographers, stated that it “sent the one of its most qualified and audacious photographers to the Spanish capital.” Photographers Gerda Taro (partner of Capa) and David Seymour are also often cited as the primary representatives of war photography in that era.
SPAIN. Cerro Muriano, Cordoba front. September 5th, 1936. Republican militiaman (Federico BORRELL GARCIA) at the moment of death. (“The Falling Soldier”).
The focus early on in photojournalism was to emphasize photographs as truthful objective representations, but war propaganda would soon challenge this philosophy. Propaganda posters would be deployed during the Spanish Civil War by Nationalists and Republicans, displaying images that would recruit people to their cause. Caroline Brothers notes “whether to intervene was a question theoretically tied to public opinion, at least in the foreign democracies, and since this opinion was informed at least as much by images as by text, the press photographs of the Spanish Civil War can be understood as weapons rather than simple illustrations.” These images which may have been seen as an artform in the early days of wartime photography, would soon be weaponized to challenge public opinion about war.
Sources:
“Robert Capa: Death of a Loyalist Soldier (1936-Probably Printed in the 1930s or Early 1940s).” Artsy, https://www.artsy.net/artwork/robert-capa-death-of-a-loyalist-soldier.
Photojournalism during the Spanish Civil War, https://library.ucsd.edu/speccoll/swphotojournalism/.
“Robert Capa and the Spanish Civil War: Magnum Photos Magnum Photos.” Magnum Photos, https://www.magnumphotos.com/newsroom/conflict/robert-capa-spanish-civil-war/.
I love your topic and I think that it is a very unique one to choose. We see pictures around us everyday and never think much about who took them or what else was going on while that specific moment was being captured. Pictures show only a small portion of the things that are happening around people. In the Spanish Civil war the pictures that we see are never to the full extent of what it was like to actually be there during it. The photos themselves are interpreted in so many different ways and as was mentioned above that the photos were used to get public opinion on war. This was something that could happen because nobody who is looking at those photos was actually present during them. Everything is left open to interpretation, which is the best part of pictures.
Though there are cliches when it comes to analyzing pictures, a visual form can further shape one’s interpretation of certain things. I feel like this book can especially be applied to daily life and how we tend to overlook the things that may seem simple at a first glance. For this context presentation, what I can take away from these pictures are the level of nationalism and the toll that war has on opposing sides.
Wow, this is a very interesting topic to choose! The Spanish Civil War is not talked about very often and when it is the topic of photography is not typically brought up. Although, the photography that occurred during this time was some of the best and shaped a path for future photographers. The photos do not show everything, but what they did show during the war made people truly think about what was going on and comprehend what people are actually going through. Furthermore, people tend to overlook what was going on and because these photos were taken and showed there grew a greater understanding of war.
Great post! It’s very interesting to analyze photography in the context of war because that aspect of it is never really covered in any other class. I appreciate how you brought up propaganda which is an added layer to the already existing implicit messages and power dynamics within photography.
I haven’t started the book yet, but there is some great background information here! I haven’t seen any of these images before, and it helps to have this reference going in. Great post and thank you for sharing!
I think you provided a lot of great background information on the Spanish Civil War. The photos only show a part of what was happening in the war which can cause people to overlook all that happened.
Great context presentation! The background information you provided about the Spanish Civil War and Sontag’s thoughts about an image helped my understanding before beginning the book.
I love your topic and this post. I think analyzing photographs from past wars is really interesting. You can read a lot of facts about wars, such as the Spanish Civil War, but seeing photographs to put a storyline along with the facts helps my understanding a lot. I hadn’t seen many photographs from the Spanish Civil War so this helps with my understanding of the book a lot. Thank you for sharing!
Great information in this presentation! The images provided help to paint a great mental picture.
I never really put much thought into who was behind all of the famous war photos throughout history. It is insane the amount of courage they must have had to put themselves in danger like that for the photograph. Thanks for showing some appreciation to Robert Capa
Thank you for your blog post. This was really interesting background information on the spanish civil war
I agree in that photography played a major role in accelerating the imagery and ultimate “weight” of war within the public. In that time, the “shock” of the images were presumably far greater than those we see today, as graphic illustrations have inherently become much easier to capture/distribute and are more realistic than those previously shown in fine arts (drawing, painting, etc.) Like Sontag discusses, the intent of photography tends to vary immensely than of its impact and that gap has shown to expand with time – predicting to continue as such in the future, as well.
I did not know much about the Spanish Civil War and have never before heard about Robert Capa. Thanks for your great summary of his importance in documenting war.