Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting
This article addresses the power of images in three periods of 20th century history. The use of images, particularly of photography, during these periods became omnipresent, although there are many other examples of the power of images over the relevance of words: the sight of Phryne’s partially nak...
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| Pubblicato in: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/cs, |
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| Autori principali: | , , |
| Natura: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Lingua: | Anglais |
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Comunicação e sociedade
2021
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| Accesso online: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:cs_4462 en https://journals.openedition.org/cs/4462 2021-02-09T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/eyp0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting Comunicação e sociedade Centro de estudos de comunicação e sociedade info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2183-3575 info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/1645-2089 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/cs Barroso, Eduardo Paz Estrada, Rui Toldy, Teresa poder fotografia pintura nazismo estalinismo power photography painting nazism stalinism This article addresses the power of images in three periods of 20th century history. The use of images, particularly of photography, during these periods became omnipresent, although there are many other examples of the power of images over the relevance of words: the sight of Phryne’s partially naked body, for instance, had a big impact in her trial in the 4th century. Two of the examples presented in this paper (Nazism and Stalinism) used images as an instrument of power. They aimed to present simultaneously a sense of heroism and of “normalization” in radical contrast to the brutality that left a decisive mark in history as one of the most tragic dark moments of the 20th century. On the other hand, under Stalin, photos and images were manipulated: erasing people in photos can be understood as a macabre allegory of their annihilation in real life. The efficacy in the re-construction of reality through the manipulation of photos seems to result from an illusional omnipotence, as if dictators had the power to enunciate, create and destroy “reality”. The third part of this article discusses the answer open and given by painting to the increasing erosion of images witnessed nowadays. Painting, contrary to the ephemeral nature of photography, survive dark times. It resists in a stubborn way, as we can see, for instance in the example of Tuymans’ paintings. You cannot erase its memory. Painting is not “programmatic”. It is an attempt to depollute images. And by doing this, it tears open a space for the search for meaning. Este artigo procura abordar o poder da presença da imagem em três períodos históricos do século XX, algo que se tornou omnipresente nestas épocas históricas, mas que não é exclusivo das mesmas: veja-se a referência ao impacto da visão de parte do corpo descoberto de Frine, levada a julgamento no século IV a.C. A imagem, em dois dos casos aqui apresentados (o nazismo e o estalinismo), constituiu um instrumento ao serviço do poder, com o objetivo de encenar simultaneamente a “heroicidade” e uma normalidade em contraste radical com uma brutalidade que marcou decisivamente a história e constituiu um dos principais momentos de trevas vividos no século XX. Por seu turno, sob Estaline, a imagem é manipulada, tornando o processo de rasura de personagens uma alegoria macabra da sua aniquilação real. A eficácia da reconstrução da realidade, através da manipulação da imagem, passa, assim, por uma ilusão de omnipotência: como se os ditadores tivessem o poder de enunciar, construir e destruir a “realidade”. Na terceira parte, partindo da questão da acentuada erosão das imagens na atualidade, a discussão centra-se na resposta que a pintura abre e problematiza. Ao contrário do carácter efémero da fotografia, a pintura sobrevive a tempos sombrios, persiste teimosamente, como se pode ver no caso de Tuymans. A memória não pode ser apagada. E porque não é programática, porque constitui uma tentativa de despoluição da imagem, rasga o espaço para a busca de sentido. |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
poder fotografia pintura nazismo estalinismo power photography painting nazism stalinism |
| spellingShingle |
poder fotografia pintura nazismo estalinismo power photography painting nazism stalinism Barroso, Eduardo Paz Estrada, Rui Toldy, Teresa Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| description |
This article addresses the power of images in three periods of 20th century history. The use of images, particularly of photography, during these periods became omnipresent, although there are many other examples of the power of images over the relevance of words: the sight of Phryne’s partially naked body, for instance, had a big impact in her trial in the 4th century. Two of the examples presented in this paper (Nazism and Stalinism) used images as an instrument of power. They aimed to present simultaneously a sense of heroism and of “normalization” in radical contrast to the brutality that left a decisive mark in history as one of the most tragic dark moments of the 20th century. On the other hand, under Stalin, photos and images were manipulated: erasing people in photos can be understood as a macabre allegory of their annihilation in real life. The efficacy in the re-construction of reality through the manipulation of photos seems to result from an illusional omnipotence, as if dictators had the power to enunciate, create and destroy “reality”. The third part of this article discusses the answer open and given by painting to the increasing erosion of images witnessed nowadays. Painting, contrary to the ephemeral nature of photography, survive dark times. It resists in a stubborn way, as we can see, for instance in the example of Tuymans’ paintings. You cannot erase its memory. Painting is not “programmatic”. It is an attempt to depollute images. And by doing this, it tears open a space for the search for meaning. |
| author |
Barroso, Eduardo Paz Estrada, Rui Toldy, Teresa |
| author_facet |
Barroso, Eduardo Paz Estrada, Rui Toldy, Teresa |
| author_sort |
Barroso, Eduardo Paz |
| title |
Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| title_short |
Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| title_full |
Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| title_fullStr |
Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| title_sort |
images and power: scenario, erasure and painting |
| publisher |
Comunicação e sociedade |
| publishDate |
2021 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/cs |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/cs/4462 |
| _version_ |
1877293725806231552 |