War Primer 2
Adam Broomberg, Oliver Chanarin
2011
War Primer 2
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One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired ...
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War Primer 2
Adam Broomberg, Oliver Chanarin
2011
London: MACK
Unpaginated [200 pages]
30 × 25 cm
Edition of 100; signed and numbered 6/100

One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired press photographs from the Second World War with sharp four-line poems, revealing how images shape public understanding of war and teaching readers to look beyond their apparent documentary truth.


 


Rather than simply updating Brecht's project, Broomberg and Chanarin shift their focus to the so-called "War on Terror." They overlay the pages of War Primer with photographs and video stills drawn from the internet (produced by soldiers, journalists, propagandists, and civilians) to create a dialogue between two eras of conflict. Images of the Twin Towers attacks, the execution of Saddam Hussein, and the presidency of George W. Bush intersect with Brecht's poems and wartime photographs, revealing enduring patterns in the circulation and political use of violence.


 


Both books question the authority of photographic images. If Brecht saw the press photograph as something to be deciphered, War Primer 2 asks what happens when images (instantly shared and endlessly reproduced) shape history as much as they record it. First published in 2011, the work remains a compelling reflection on the power of images in an age of digital media, misinformation, and fake news.

London: MACK
Unpaginated [200 pages]
30 × 25 cm
Edition of 100; signed and numbered 6/100

One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired press photographs from the Second World War with sharp four-line poems, revealing how images shape public understanding of war and teaching readers to look beyond their apparent documentary truth.

 

Rather than simply updating Brecht's project, Broomberg and Chanarin shift their focus to the so-called "War on Terror." They overlay the pages of War Primer with photographs and video stills drawn from the internet (produced by soldiers, journalists, propagandists, and civilians) to create a dialogue between two eras of conflict. Images of the Twin Towers attacks, the execution of Saddam Hussein, and the presidency of George W. Bush intersect with Brecht's poems and wartime photographs, revealing enduring patterns in the circulation and political use of violence.

 

Both books question the authority of photographic images. If Brecht saw the press photograph as something to be deciphered, War Primer 2 asks what happens when images (instantly shared and endlessly reproduced) shape history as much as they record it. First published in 2011, the work remains a compelling reflection on the power of images in an age of digital media, misinformation, and fake news.

DESCRIPTION

One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired press photographs from the Second World War with sharp four-line poems, revealing how images shape public understanding of war and teaching readers to look beyond their apparent documentary truth.

 

Rather than simply updating Brecht's project, Broomberg and Chanarin shift their focus to the so-called "War on Terror." They overlay the pages of War Primer with photographs and video stills drawn from the internet (produced by soldiers, journalists, propagandists, and civilians) to create a dialogue between two eras of conflict. Images of the Twin Towers attacks, the execution of Saddam Hussein, and the presidency of George W. Bush intersect with Brecht's poems and wartime photographs, revealing enduring patterns in the circulation and political use of violence.

 

Both books question the authority of photographic images. If Brecht saw the press photograph as something to be deciphered, War Primer 2 asks what happens when images (instantly shared and endlessly reproduced) shape history as much as they record it. First published in 2011, the work remains a compelling reflection on the power of images in an age of digital media, misinformation, and fake news.

London: MACK
Unpaginated [200 pages]
30 × 25 cm
Edition of 100; signed and numbered 6/100

One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired press photographs from the Second World War with sharp four-line poems, revealing how images shape public understanding of war and teaching readers to look beyond their apparent documentary truth.

 

Rather than simply updating Brecht's project, Broomberg and Chanarin shift their focus to the so-called "War on Terror." They overlay the pages of War Primer with photographs and video stills drawn from the internet (produced by soldiers, journalists, propagandists, and civilians) to create a dialogue between two eras of conflict. Images of the Twin Towers attacks, the execution of Saddam Hussein, and the presidency of George W. Bush intersect with Brecht's poems and wartime photographs, revealing enduring patterns in the circulation and political use of violence.

 

Both books question the authority of photographic images. If Brecht saw the press photograph as something to be deciphered, War Primer 2 asks what happens when images (instantly shared and endlessly reproduced) shape history as much as they record it. First published in 2011, the work remains a compelling reflection on the power of images in an age of digital media, misinformation, and fake news.

MORE BOOKS

One of the defining artist's books of the twenty-first century, War Primer 2 sees Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin revisit Bertolt Brecht's landmark War Primer (1955) for the age of digital media. Brecht's original paired press photographs from the Second World War with sharp four-line poems, revealing how images shape public understanding of war and teaching readers to look beyond their apparent documentary truth.

 

Rather than simply updating Brecht's project, Broomberg and Chanarin shift their focus to the so-called "War on Terror." They overlay the pages of War Primer with photographs and video stills drawn from the internet (produced by soldiers, journalists, propagandists, and civilians) to create a dialogue between two eras of conflict. Images of the Twin Towers attacks, the execution of Saddam Hussein, and the presidency of George W. Bush intersect with Brecht's poems and wartime photographs, revealing enduring patterns in the circulation and political use of violence.

 

Both books question the authority of photographic images. If Brecht saw the press photograph as something to be deciphered, War Primer 2 asks what happens when images (instantly shared and endlessly reproduced) shape history as much as they record it. First published in 2011, the work remains a compelling reflection on the power of images in an age of digital media, misinformation, and fake news.

MORE BOOKS