Iconic Imagery

As the 2012 Olympic Games comes to a conclusion, I'm reminded of a photograph which came out of the 1968 summer games in Mexico City.

Two athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos chose the interest of their community over their personal insterests and raised their fists in a protest salute. upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia…

Images have power. They can cause pain or joy. They can change history.

Consider Nick Ut's photo of Phan Thi Kim Phuc (who as a child was badly burned in a South Vientamese Napolm Attack) upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… Which helped move US public opinion against the Vietnam War.

Or Joe Rosenthal's photo of the flag raising on Iwo Jima upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… Which helped stiffen the resolve of the US to finish WW2.

And images can be used as part of our healing process, such Stan Stearn's photo of JohnJohn (John F. Kennedy, Jr.) saluting his fathers casket. trworkbench.com/blog/wp-conten…

Even with modern video, I continue to think in terms of the single frame - the stopped image. The vapor trail of the Shuttle Challenger or the second plane about to fly into the World Trade Center.

The 20th centrury was ruled by the image. It helped frame our understanding of it and helped change opinion. Images help start movements and end wars. We work in a powerful medium. One which can change history and change the future. Use that power carefully.

- Plage