Panels > Intracontinental Photographic Circulations: a Neglected History

Histories of photography written in France over the last few decades have been concerned primarily with two geographic areas–Western Europe and North America (i.e., mostly, the United States). While the specifics of photographic production, uses and theories in both regions have been extensively documented, often taking into account their transatlantic circulation, the same cannot be said for the rest of the world. Histories of photography outside Europe and the United States usually remain confined to national academic circles, with limited echo abroad. Within Latin America, a continental dynamic has nevertheless emerged, for almost half a century: in 1978, the convening of the first Congress of Latin American Photography in Mexico City was a milestone. In recent decades, many Latin American artists and photojournalists have established their reputation far beyond their own homelands, and many cultural institutions dedicated to photography have emerged. The idea that there might be such a thing as "Latin American photography"—however uncertain its boundaries may be—has gradually taken shape. Still, the notion that American photography might encompass the northern, central and southern parts of the continent has never been explored, notwithstanding the fact that numerous intracontinental circulations across the Americas have contributed to inform photographic and theoretical perspectives. Susan Meiselas’ covering of the Sandinista revolution, and coordinating a photobook on Augusto Pinochet’s dictatorship (Chile from within, 1991), has arguably made her the figurehead of these circulations. Yet many other photographers have taken back roads across the rugged geography of the continent. Photographers from the United States have been touring Latin America since the 19th century, in the name of science (Hiram Bingham "discovering" Machu Picchu with a panoramic Kodak), art (Paul Strand and Edward Weston reinventing themselves in Mexico), or the pragmatic interests invested in the "Good Neighbor" policy (Geneviève Naylor in Brazil). The northward journey appears to have begun more recently, but it has blossomed to a remarkable extent: MoMA exhibitions such as Mexico: 8 Photographers (1943) and Projects: Martín Chambi & Edward Ranney (1979) were instrumental in legitimizing the modernity of Latin-American photography, later confirmed by Houston’s FotoFest festival (1992) and the Urbes Mutantes exhibition (International Center of Photography, 2014). Work by Pedro Meyer (Spain/Mexico), Camilo José Vergara and Alfredo Jaar (Chile) is largely determined by U.S. themes and representations, causing even Latino organizations to criticize Vergara for relying on caricatures in an exhibition entitled El Nuevo Mundo: the Landscape of Latino Los Angeles (2001). For many, such as Californian Yvonne Venegas or Magnum photographer Alex Webb, it is the border itself, separating two Americas, which the most emblematic continental landscape. The workshop will aim to bring together contributions that highlight these interactions and question the scope of these exchanges. How might pictures have contributed to the creation of artistic movements, political solidarities or transnational cultural rapprochements? Have they played a role in feeding political conflicts? These questions, among others, point to the relevance of pursuing a connected history of photography in the Americas, through its representations, its actors and its institutions.

Thursday, September 23rd, 9am-11am

Centre de Colloques, room 2 

Organizers :

- Didier AUBERT (Université Sorbonne Nouvelle – Paris 3 / THALIM UMR 7172)

- Marion GAUTREAU (Université Toulouse – Jean Jaurès / FRAMESPA UMR 5136)

Interventions : 

Ariel Arnal (Universidad Iberoamericana) & Rebeca Monroy Nasr (Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia) – La era de los contagios: Miradas cruzadas México y América Latina. El Primer y Segundo Coloquios Latinoamericanos de Fotografía (1978 y 1980)

Gwen Cressman (SEARCH – Université de Strasbourg) – The Making of Landscape Photography at the Border beyond a Nationalist Narrative

Amy Cox Hall – Uncirculated : The Limits of the Sentimental in Expeditionary Science

Alberto Del Castillo (Instituto Mora) – Fotografía y memoria en México y Argentina. El uso de las imágenes para la crítica del poder

Jennifer Tucker (Wesleyan University) – The Chile Photograph: The Story of How a Santiago Daguerreotype became a Global Icon

Jeffrey Swartwood (CLIMAS – École Polytechnique) – Rendered Crossings: Mexico seen through the Prism of Californian Mid-Century Surf Photography