Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Faces from Bosnia

This collection of images from Time features photographs of the conflict in Bosnia in the early 90's, complete with photographer commentary. Through the lenses of these brave people, we are given a direct view of the realities of war by seeing as they see, engulfed in conflict.

War photography always has the human element in full-focus, and these photos are no different. Highlighted here is a loss of life and of humanity. We see the faces of victims suffering, and soldiers as well. This is made all the more poignant by the photographers' commentary on each of their photos relating the story behind it, which gives it all the more meaning. I find the words of the late Alexandra Boulat to be particularly chilling as she makes note of a tradition that formed where parents would run a gun under the pillows of their children before they sleep. Truly "the night had come and the nightmare would last 10 years."

Of all these images, it seems to me that the one that stands out the most is of the men trapped in a prison camp. Convert it to greyscale and would you even be able to tell it was of Bosnia and not an old depiction of the Holocaust? Not that it feels appropriate to compare the two, that is. "Grave war crimes" indeed.

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