Observers from abroad : twentieth century western documentary photography in the USSR / Martin A. Miller.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Miller, Martin A. (Martin Alan), 1938- Author.

Series:

Routledge histories of Central and Eastern Europe

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Documentary photography--Soviet Union--History.

Documentary photography.

Photography in historiography.

Photographers--Soviet Union--History.

Photographers.

Europeans--Soviet Union--History.

Europeans.

Americans--Soviet Union--History.

Americans.

Physical Description:

278 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2025.

Summary:

"Observers from Abroad offers an examination of published and archival images of Soviet Russia, providing a deeper understanding of the complexities and vicissitudes of its political culture. The book argues that photography, when accurately interpreted, can be utilized as primary historical evidence that has the potential to both enhance and counter traditional verbal analysis. Employing a number of images of the Soviet Union captured by gifted documentary photographers from the West, who received visas to work in Moscow from the Bolshevik seizure of power in 1917 to the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the book also assesses the intentions of the photographers, who acted as conscious observers capturing visual evidence under the restraining conditions of state surveillance. Each chapter provides a closer look at the life and work of these photographers, with a wealth of historical images and discussion. Richly illustrated and engaging, this volume will be ideal for students, scholars, and readers interested in Soviet history, twentieth century history, and the history of photography"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction : the USSR in black and white

First pictorial impressions from revolutionary Russia

James Abbe : the original photographic cold warrior

Margaret Bourke-White : modernity and the machine age

John Heartfield : the dialectics of communist photomontage

Robert Capa : travels with Steinbeck

Henri Cartier-Bresson : the aesthetic humanist

The tense and tender imagery of William Klein

Inge Morath's Russian intelligentsia

Brief encounters with a dying state

Conclusion.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version Miller, Martin A. Observers from abroad

ISBN:

9781032532899

1032532890

9781032532875

1032532874

OCLC:

1467672281

Publisher Number:

90101651610