Workshop Visual Culture and Contemporary History: Iconology and Contemporary History, 23. 10. 2025 von 12:30 Uhr – 19:00 Uhr im Z.1.09
The public workshop Visual Culture & Contemporary History explores how images shape memory, politics, and historical understanding. From Nazi deportation photographs and their modern appropriations, to contested monuments and visual sources of the Second World War, the presentations highlight the power of visual media in documenting, distorting, and reinterpreting history.
Prof. Dr. Alina Bothe
Deportation Photographs: Between Excerpt and Insight
How can we read deportation photographs as historical sources in their own right? This talk explores images from the #LastSeen project, asking what they reveal when analysed beyond written records and contextual traditions.
Prof. Dr. Anna Schober-de Graaf
Faces and Gestures of Injury and Annihilation
Images from the Nazi era continue to circulate in contemporary media and political culture. This lecture examines how such appropriations—from posters to Instagram—shape public debates, historical awareness, and the line between popularisation and propaganda.
Prof. Dr. Dieter Pohl
Visual Sources of Nazi Crimes
Renowned historian of Eastern Europe and National Socialism, Dieter Pohl will contribute insights into the intersections of visual culture and twentieth-century history.
Dr. Virginia Magnaghi
The Green Afterlife of a Missed Fascist Acropolis
The mausoleum of Cesare Battisti in Trento embodies the Fascist regime’s attempt to reshape memory and landscape. This case study highlights the monument’s contested legacy and the role of nature in shaping remembrance.
Irene Hohenwarter Dott. ssa.
Wojtek the Soldier Bear and his Representations in the Fine Arts
Adopted by Polish troops during WWII, Wojtek the bear became soldier, mascot, and later a symbol of peace and friendship. This presentation explores his memorialisation in monuments across Europe.
Dr. Alexandra Pulvermacher
The Depiction of Soviet Prisoners of War in German Propaganda Photographs, 1941–44
Millions of Soviet POWs perished under Nazi rule, yet their visual record remains understudied. This talk analyses propaganda photographs that dehumanised them, probing motifs, strategies, and their impact on wartime perception.
Dr. Olli Kleemola
Soviet Prisoners of War in Finnish War Photography during the Continuation War (1941–1944)
Finnish photographs of Soviet POWs differ from their German counterparts, offering unique perspectives on captivity and propaganda. This keynote compares official army photos with private soldiers’ snapshots.
Dr. Tetiana Pastushenko
The Portrayal of Soviet Prisoners of War and Ukrainian Civilians in Photographs by Wehrmacht Officer Johannes Gutschmidt
A rare archive of 2,000 photographs taken in occupied Ukraine reveals everyday life in Nazi camps. This presentation examines how such images reflect both propaganda and personal observation.
We look forward to welcoming all interested parties from within and outside the university as guests.
Please register at: susanne [dot] posch [at] aau [dot] at
