Photography: A Cultural History - Softcover

The third edition of this groundbreaking survey of international photography has not only been expanded and brought up to date but restructured to offer readers even greater clarity and ease of use. It now comprises 14 shorter chapters each with an introduction and brief summary. Chapters are grouped into six Parts which begin with an introduction to the time period.

            Photography is examined through the lenses of art, science, social sciences, travel, war, fashion, the mass media, and individual practitioners. These broad topics complement a fully developed cultural context whose emphasis is more key ideas than individuals. The author has further enriched the third edition with the findings of the most recent research and exhibitions. These include fresh insights into Victorian photography’s relationship to painting and to the expansion of the British Empire, as well as photography’s involvement in German and Russian experimental art movements between the World Wars. The author also draws on publications that show the extent to which vernacular photography existed alongside art and commercial practice. ‘Focus’ boxes highlight interesting cultural or controversial issues, for example ‘Film and Photography’, ‘Photomontage or Photocollage’, and ‘Making an Icon of Revolution’. In the revised final chapter, the author pays close attention to the impact of digital photography on photographic history and contemporary practice, particularly the ease and frequency with which people worldwide use digital cameras and camera phones.

            In addition to representing the canon of Europe and the United States, the book presents work from Latin America, Africa, India, Russia, China, and Japan. ‘Portrait’ boxes feature certain photographers in greater detail and new to this edition are works by contemporary artists including Vik Muniz, Suzanne Opton, Tyler Hicks, Walid Raad, Anthony Goicolea, and Jean-Luc Mylayne.