What Is a Photograph of War?

A Duke Libraries exhibition features images that consider war as both experience and representation

A drawing of a person carrying weapons

This is a summary of a story on Duke University Libraries.

“WARphotography AMERICANimage,” an exhibition at the Rubenstein Library Photography Gallery, includes moments from the Civil War, Vietnam and the Global War on Terror.

There’s the work of photographers Matthew Brady and Alexander Gardner: They used a horse-drawn wagon to haul wet-plate cameras and mobile darkrooms to capture and develop iconic images of the Civil War on storied battlefields.

The gallery features images from America’s ongoing Global War on Terror, including Operation Enduring Freedom triggered by the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom.

“Making Peace With Death,” from photographer Inbal Abergil, chronicles war’s grim common denominator from the perspectives of Casualty Notification Officers and military chaplains, who must tell families their loved ones have been killed in action.

“What I found out in my many years of being a chaplain,” Chaplain James Smith said in a quote next to his photo, “whether you’re agnostic, whether you’re from a different religion, a different denomination, when someone asks if, ‘Do you mind if I pray for you?’ I’ve never been turned down. I’ve never heard anyone say, ‘No, please don’t.’”

The exhibition is open until mid-November.

To learn more about the exhibition visit Duke University Libraries.