Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Maria Osten and Gerda Taro were part of the collective of war correspondents in Republican Spain who were committed to the cause. The two women, who were anti-fascist, travelled to Spain several times between 1936 and 1937/1938. They aimed to use their means, words, and pictures to record the reality of the war both at the front and in the rearguard. They wanted to document credibly the death and destruction, on the one hand, and the defense of the republican democratic regime against fascist aggression, on the other. At the same time, they wanted to convey their political and emotional commitment so that their addressees would feel compelled to act in favor of the Republic. To this end, they sought the most appropriate means of expression, Taro by developing new photographic techniques, and Osten by experimenting with different narrative styles. Both had hazardous lives and a tragic death. For decades, their names and work were forgotten, only to be revived in the 1980s, especially in the case of Gerda Taro. Nowadays, their works are documents and records of the historical past, indispensable for preserving its memory.
Authors: Universidad Complutense de Madrid (España), Ana Pérez López
Institution: Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Language: English
Subfield: History
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4411354817