For five years, Meredith Davenport photographed and interviewed men who play live-action games based on contemporary conflicts, such as a recreation of the hunt for Osama Bin Laden that took place thousands of miles from the conflict zone on a campground in Northern Virginia. Her images speak about the way that trauma and conflict penetrate a culture sheltered from the horrors of war. Bringing together a series of two dozen photographs with essays discussing and analysing the influence of the media, particularly photographs and video, on the culture at large and how conflict is ‘discussed’ in the visual realm, Theater of War is a unique look at the influence of contemporary conflicts, and their omnipresence in the media, on popular culture. Written by an experienced photojournalist who has covered a variety of human rights issues worldwide, this book is an essential addition to the library of anyone interested in the confluence of war and media.
Содержание
RECOUNTING MATTERS – Alfredo Cramerotti
IN PURSUIT OF WAR – Fred Ritchin
PHOTOGRAPHS – Meredith Davenport
POINT OF VIEW – Meredith Davenport
INTERVIEW WITH PARTICIPANT 1, INSTRUCTOR – Meredith Davenport
INTERVIEW WITH PARTICIPANT 2, GAME DEVELOPER – Meredith Davenport
THEATER OF WAR: “A MASTERS DEGREE IN SHOOTING STUFF” – Esther Mac Callum-Stewart
WAR SIMULATION GAMING: SPORTING TRAUMA – Jessica Catherine Lieberman
Об авторе
Alfredo Cramerotti is a writer, curator and editor working across TV, radio, publishing, writing and exhibition making. He co-curated Manifesta 8, the European Biennial of Contemporary Art, 2010, the Maldives Pavilion and the Wales Pavilion at the 55th Venice Art Biennial, 2013, and the 4th Trienala Ladina in South Tyrol in 2013. He directs MOSTYN, Wales’ leading contemporary art institution, and the itinerant projects AGM Culture and Chamber of Public Secrets (CPS). He is Research Scholar at the European Centre for Photography Research, University of Wales, Newport, and Editor of the Critical Photography series by Intellect Books. His own publications include the book Aesthetic Journalism: How to Inform without Informing (2009) and Unmapping the City: Perspectives of Flatness (2010).