Photography of the Vietnam War The Power of Imagery

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Photography of the Vietnam WarThe Power of
Imagery
By Devon Behelak
2
Introductory Statement

• I will be presenting today a virtual exhibition
  of photographs of the Vietnam War and photographs
  of its negative public reaction in America during
  the late 1960s and early 1970s. The point of my
  exhibition is to show how photography of the
  Vietnam War helped change American sentiments
  towards the war during that time. I want to show
  how previous forms of documentary war
  photography evolved into a more realistic
  portrayal of the truth behind wars across seas
  that were hidden from the Americans public eyes.
  It is an important topic to discuss because it
  was pivotal in helping to change the American
  perception of war and was a step forward in
  contesting the government and its national
  policies.

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Brief History of Vietnam War

• The Vietnam War, also known as the Second
  Indochina War occurred from 1965 to April
  30,1975. The Vietnam Conflict often includes
  what occurred from 1959 to April 30, 1975. It
  concluded with the North Vietnamese military
  victory after more than 15 years and unified
  Vietnam under the communist government of the
  North.
• It was the first ever major military defeat for
  the United States. The war was fought between the
  Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam)
  and the United States and was supported by the
  Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). Over 1.4
  million military personnel were killed in the war
  (approximately 6 were members of the United
  States armed forces), while estimates of civilian
  fatalities range from 2 to 5.1 million.

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War Photography

• The docile and iconic imagery that emerged before
  the Vietnam War was tame, and did not necessarily
  showcase death and the grim ugliness of war.
• Images were recorded by the government and the
  army, and didnt necessarily filter down into the
  publics eye. Instead, photographs of these
  iconic images were used to fuel patriotism and
  ensure a sense of victory, instead of showing the
  futility of war.
• Photography during the Vietnam War moved away
  from this traditional form of photography and
  took a more real, dramatic and graphic
  documentary vision. It allowed for the American
  public and the world, to get a small glimpse of
  what was going on abroad.
• The use of photography during the Vietnam War did
  create an array of emotions and reactions that
  significantly affected the American population
  and was powerful enough to strike riots, anti-war
  campaigns and the loss of lives on American soil.

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Joe Rosenthal, Marines Raising the American Flag
at on Iwo Jima - Old Glory goes up on Mt.
Suribachi, February 23, 1945. Gelatin silver
print.
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Slide Caption

• In terms of photographic iconic imagery, this is
  the best example of American war related
  photography before the Vietnam War. This image
  showcases American participation in World War II.
  There has been controversy over whether or not
  this image was staged or not, however, it does
  not take away from the fact that it can inspire
  viewers and represents a tamer, slightly more
  positive side of WWII.

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Vo Anh Khanh, U Minh Forest, Ca Mau, September
15, 1970.
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Slide Caption

• I included this photograph to contrast American
  Vietnam War photography with a representation of
  Vietnamese war photography during that time. As
  with the Rosenthal image, the Vietnamese did the
  same to create iconic images of war. British
  photographer Time Page, published photographs
  taken by North Vietnamese civilians and military
  photographers. The Northern Vietnamese
  photographers used black and white film and
  relied on jungle night to create outdoor
  darkrooms. They were seldomly known to photograph
  the dead and were set on inspirational imagery of
  endurance and patriotism, very similar to the
  style of American war photography pre-Vietnam.

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Eddie Adams, General Loan Executing a Vietcong
Suspect, February 1, 1968. Gelatin silver print.
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Slide Caption

• The following are a series of images that are
  quite graphic in their nature, but are relevant
  to the theme of this exhibition. These shocking
  images are what the American public experienced
  and reacted to during the 1960s and 1970s.
•  
• SIDE NOTE Adams photo - Photographer Philip
  Jones Griffith, who photographed the conflict for
  3 years of mostly the Vietnamese peasants
  perspective and experience. Griffith took a photo
  of a widow holding a copy of the newspaper
  photograph (Adams photograph) of her husband who
  was killed.

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Huynh Cong (Nick) UT, Children Fleeing a Napalm
Strike, June 8, 1972.
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Larry Burrows, At a First-Aid Center During
Operation Prairie, 1966.
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Slide Caption

• Life Magazine commissioned Larry Burrows for
  photographs and he lost his life in a helicopter
  while covering the South Vietnamese invasion of
  Laos on February 10, 1971. His color photographs
  exemplified the United-States futile involvement
  in Vietnam.

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Larry Burrows, Near Dong Ha South Vietnam, 1966.
15
Don McCullin, Corpse of North Vietnamese Soldier,
1968.
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Slide Caption

• McCullin juxtaposed the Vietnamese victim with
  his personal effects. He composed the image,
  purposely placing the items around the victim, as
  a means to create a psychologically expressive
  image.

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Ron Haeberle - Untitled Document Photograph
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Slide Caption

• Ron Haeberle was army photographer and recorded
  the massacre of civilians in the Vietnamese
  village of My Lai by a United-States Army
  company. Haeberle submitted the black and white
  film to the army and kept the color film, which
  he began showing in the US when he was
  demobilized. The image was published in Cleveland
  (Ohio) Plain Dealer and traveled around the
  world.

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Ron Haeberle Peter Brant, Q. And Babies? A. And
Babies, 1970. Offset Lithograph printed in color.
Collaborative work part of the Art Workers
Coalition.
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Slide Caption

• Haeberle also collaborated with staff from the
  Museum of Modern Art in New York and members of
  the Art Workers coalition and used the image to
  create a gripping anti-war poster. The My Lai
  massacre was probably the most shocking and
  disturbing aspect of the Vietnam War, so much so
  that it help persuade artists, photographers and
  activists to combine their efforts and seek the
  truth.

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Slide Caption

• Kent State Incident
• Also known as the May 4 massacre or Kent State
  massacre, occurred at Kent State University in
  the city of Kent, Ohio, and involved the shooting
  of students by members of the Ohio National Guard
  on Monday, May 4, 1970. Four students were killed
  and nine others wounded, one of whom suffered
  permanent paralysis
• Some of the students who were shot were
  protesting the American invasion of Cambodia,
  which President Richard Nixon announced in a
  television address on April 30. However, other
  students who were shot were merely walking nearby
  or observing the protest at a distance. Richard
  Nixon had been elected President in 1968,
  promising to end the Vietnam War. In November
  1969 the My Lai Massacre was exposed, prompting
  widespread outrage around the world and leading
  to increased public opposition to the war. In
  addition, the following month saw the first draft
  lottery instituted since World War II. The war
  had appeared to be winding down throughout 1969
  so a new invasion of Cambodia angered those who
  felt it only exacerbated the conflict.
• Many young people, including college students and
  teachers, were concerned about being drafted to
  fight in a war that they strongly opposed. The
  expansion of that war into another country
  appeared to them to have increased that risk. The
  shootings led to protests on college campuses
  throughout the United States, and a student
  strike - causing over 450 campuses across the
  country to close with both violent and
  non-violent demonstrations.

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Martin Levick, Guardsman Myers Flashes the Peace
Sign, Sunday May 3, 1970.
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Randy L. Wallick, The Distance Between the Guard
and the Students Increase, Sunday May 3, 1970.
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John Paul Filo, The Guard Move Out. The Students
Retreat, Monday, May 4, 1970.
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Harold Walker, The Guard Retreat up the Hill
Toward Taylor Hall, Monday May 4, 1970.
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Kent State Students Running for Cover in a Kent
State Parking Lot, 1970.
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John Paul Filo, Untitled (Kent State girl
screaming over dead body), 1970.
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Footnoted List of Works

• Fig. 1 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 304.
•  Fig. 2 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 365.
• Fig. 3 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 363.
•  
• Fig. 4 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 364.
•  
• Fig. 5 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 362.

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Footnoted List of Works

•  
• Fig. 7 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 384.
•  
• Fig. 8 - Ron Haeberle, Untitled Document
  Photograph, online photograph, Vietnam War
  Atrocities,
• accessed 30 October 2007 available from
•  
• lthttp//www.angelfire.com/ultra/vietnamwar/photos
  .htmlgt
• Fig. 9 Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 365.
•  
• Fig. 10 James A. Michener, Kent State What
  Happened and Why, (Brattleboro
•  
• Random House, Inc., 1971), 256.
•  

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Footnoted List of Works

• Fig. 13 - James A. Michener, Kent State What
  Happened and Why, (Brattleboro
•  
• Random House, Inc., 1971), 341.
• Fig. 14 Students Running for Cover in a Kent
  State Parking Lot 1970, photograph
•  
• online, VietnamWar.com, accessed 30 October
  2007 available from
•  
• lthttp//www.vietnamwar.com/kentstatekillings.htmgt
  .
•  
• Fig. 15 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
•  
• River Pearson Education Inc., 2006), 363.
•  

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Works Cited

• Slide 3 - Wikipedia contributors, "Vietnam War,"
  Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Accessed on 30
  October
• 2007, Available from lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wik
  i/Vietnam_wargt .
• Slide 4 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education
• Inc., 2006), 302-305 \ 361-366.
• Slide 6 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education
• Inc., 2006), 302-305.
• Slide 8 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education
• Inc., 2006), 364-365.
• Slide 10 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education
• Inc., 2006), 362.
• Slide 13 - Larry Burrows, Larry Burrows A Life
  Tribute, Life.com, Accessed on 30 October 2007,
  Available
• from lthttp//www.life.com/Life/burrows/burrows.htm
  lgt.
• Mary Warner Marien, Photography A Cultural
  History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River Pearson
  Education

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Works Cited

• Slide 16 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education Inc.,
• 2006), 382-385.
• Slide 18 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education Inc.,
• 2006), 364-365.
• Slide 20 - Mary Warner Marien, Photography A
  Cultural History, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle River
  Pearson Education Inc.,
• 2006), 364-365.
• Slide 21 27 - James A. Michener, Kent State
  What Happened and Why, (Brattleboro Random
  House, Inc., 1971), 340-343 .
• Kenneth J. Heineman, Campus Wars The Peace
  Movement at American State Universities in the
  Vietnam Era,
• (New York New York University Press, 1993), 267.
  
• Wikipedia contributors, Kent State Incident,
  Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Accessed on 30
  October
• 2007, Available from lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki
  /Kent_State_Incidentgt.