The Family of Man Revisited

Photography in a Global Age

Nonfiction, Art & Architecture, Photography, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, History
Cover of the book The Family of Man Revisited by , Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: ISBN: 9781786722973
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: December 18, 2017
Imprint: I.B. Tauris Language: English
Author:
ISBN: 9781786722973
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: December 18, 2017
Imprint: I.B. Tauris
Language: English

The Family of Man is the most widely seen exhibition in the history of photography. The book of the exhibition, still in print, is also the most commercially successful photobook ever published. First shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1955, the exhibition travelled throughout the United States and to forty-six countries, and was seen by over nine million people. Edward Steichen conceived, curated and designed the exhibition. He explained its subject as 'the everydayness of life' and 'the essential oneness of mankind throughout the world'. The exhibition was a statement against war and the conflicts and divisions that threatened a common future for humanity after 1945. The popular international response was overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Many critics, however, have dismissed the exhibition as a form of sentimental humanism unable to address the challenges of history, politics and cultural difference.

This book revises the critical debate about The Family of Man, challenging in particular the legacy of Roland Barthes's influential account of the exhibition. The expert contributors explore new contexts for understanding Steichen's work and they undertake radically new analyses of the formal dynamics of the exhibition. Also presented are documents about the exhibition never before available in English. Commentaries by critical theorist Max Horkheimer and novelist Wolfgang Koeppen, a letter from photographer August Sander, and a poetic sequence on the images by Polish poet Witold Wirpsza enable and encourage new critical reflections. A detailed survey of audience responses in Munich from 1955 allows a rare glimpse of what visitors thought about the exhibition. Today, when armed conflict, environmental catastrophe and economic inequality continue to threaten our future, it seems timely to revisit The Family of Man.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The Family of Man is the most widely seen exhibition in the history of photography. The book of the exhibition, still in print, is also the most commercially successful photobook ever published. First shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1955, the exhibition travelled throughout the United States and to forty-six countries, and was seen by over nine million people. Edward Steichen conceived, curated and designed the exhibition. He explained its subject as 'the everydayness of life' and 'the essential oneness of mankind throughout the world'. The exhibition was a statement against war and the conflicts and divisions that threatened a common future for humanity after 1945. The popular international response was overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Many critics, however, have dismissed the exhibition as a form of sentimental humanism unable to address the challenges of history, politics and cultural difference.

This book revises the critical debate about The Family of Man, challenging in particular the legacy of Roland Barthes's influential account of the exhibition. The expert contributors explore new contexts for understanding Steichen's work and they undertake radically new analyses of the formal dynamics of the exhibition. Also presented are documents about the exhibition never before available in English. Commentaries by critical theorist Max Horkheimer and novelist Wolfgang Koeppen, a letter from photographer August Sander, and a poetic sequence on the images by Polish poet Witold Wirpsza enable and encourage new critical reflections. A detailed survey of audience responses in Munich from 1955 allows a rare glimpse of what visitors thought about the exhibition. Today, when armed conflict, environmental catastrophe and economic inequality continue to threaten our future, it seems timely to revisit The Family of Man.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book Purgatory by
Cover of the book Road to Somewhere by
Cover of the book Gauguin’s Challenge by
Cover of the book Dragon Kiss by
Cover of the book RF-101 Voodoo Units in Combat by
Cover of the book The Krays by
Cover of the book Reading the Clouds by
Cover of the book Global Education Policy and International Development by
Cover of the book Lighting for Cinematography by
Cover of the book Al Capp by
Cover of the book Literature and the Experience of Globalization by
Cover of the book Spaced Out by
Cover of the book Jagdgeschwader 54 'Grünherz' by
Cover of the book Outrunning the Demons by
Cover of the book The Merchant Navy by
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy