moving beyond the media aspects of my project into the influence that art plays. i am beginning with the iconic images that have come out of war and embedded themselves in the public consciousness. Also looking at how art has played a role in unpacking the public consciousness of war, largely viewed through the lens of media coverage. Vietnam is the first war that comes to mind when I think of controversy, public scrutiny and a barrage of communication from media, to public protest, to artistic expression. I think this war is commonly held as being at the forefront of these types of social commentary, however, as I have found, this dialogue between media, the public and artists has existed in every military conflict.

a few images that I have been looking at:


John Trumball, The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker's Hill, 1786

Washington Crossing the Delaware, 1851 Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze


The romaniticized view of war, the images that these ordeals inspire even decades after the event by those who may not have been alive during at the time.

A new wrinkle that photography brings, a gritty reality, unlike anything that had been seen before. Is it art or journalism?





Timothy O'Sullivan, Dead Soldiers on Battlefield-Gettysburg, PA, 1863






Posters and propaganda. Reproducable artwork. Images that endure and become reappropriated.





James Montgomery Flagg, I Want You for the U.S. Army, 1917














Eric Heckel, Zwei Verwundete (Two Wounded Soldiers), 1915












The foreign influence, and the beginning of new movements, Dadaism, that came out of war.

Joe Rosenthal, Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, 1945















The lasting icons of American history. Reproduced endlessly, commented on again and again. The amalgamation of journalism and art. The way that one image can encapsulate the tenor of an event and reflect the larger consequences inherent to war. These images transcend the war itself and endure well beyond the scope of documenting military maneuvers. They are human history, human cruelty, suffering, triumph, terror. They evoke a sense of why we focus our attention on these conflicts, what we miss in the news, and are sometimes direct commentaries on the media.








J. Howard Miller, We Can Do It!, 1942-43