Schietoefeningen 1942 - 1943

This page from an anonymous photo album features gelatin silver prints and hand-drawn additions. The process of photography, especially its mass production via prints, meant that images could be circulated and compiled easily. In this album, we see how photography could be mobilized in the service of a particular ideology. The gelatin silver print, known for its clarity and reproducibility, allowed for consistent and standardized imagery, which was crucial for propaganda purposes. Each shot is carefully composed, likely to evoke specific emotional responses. The drawing of stacked rifles at the bottom of the page, childish in style, contrasts with the black and white photographs of the soldiers training, creating a disturbing emotional discordance. The album page shows how the techniques of photography and printmaking, coupled with naive illustration, could be intertwined to create and disseminate narratives with a specific agenda.