Mothers are smudged out and poorly cloaked beneath drapes in these 19th century portraits. But these photos are not so much relics of shoddy photography than an ode to childhood.
A World in Common is a European exhibition with African content, rather than a space that invites conversations and engagement that go beyond the images themselves.
Beth Saunders, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
While Lewis Hine’s early-20th century photographs of working children compelled Congress to limit or ban child labor, the US Department of Labor is now under fire for failing to enforce these laws.
Wolf Gruner, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Holocaust scholars long relied on documents and survivor testimonies to help reconstruct the history of that tragic event. Now, they’re turning to wordless witnesses to learn more: pictures.
Beth Saunders, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Alternative beliefs like spiritualism seem to experience resurgences in times of crisis. Taggart has spent the past 20 years exploring the oft-misunderstood religion.
Cherine Fahd, University of Technology Sydney and Sara Oscar, University of Technology Sydney
From Madonna and child to fierce matriarch, mothers have appeared in frame since photography began – even it sometimes they are just part of the furniture.
Images without context or presented with text that misrepresents what they show can be a powerful tool of misinformation, especially since photos make statements seem more believable.
To untangle the relationship between climate change, fall foliage and national park visitors, researchers are asking tourists to check their old photo albums for snapshots that could hold valuable data.
Parents have engaged in forms of ‘sharenting’ for generations. The digital age has complicated things, but while critics make some valid points, they’re not seeing the forest for the trees.
Photographs can influence us – they can inspire us to act and they can also impact the way we think about issues. The recent published photos about the migrant ‘caravan’ convey several stereotypes.