Nina Kassianou
Panteion University, Athens
I visited Princeton University during the fall of 2002, on a Rare Books
library fellowship. For my research on my dissertation entitled,
"Photographic Depiction in the Historic Period 1940-1950," I collected
photographic materials in order to explore the questions of: first, how can
photography turn into a vivid narrative medium; and second how
photography can provide another way of recording, and interpreting
history. My interests mostly focus on how social and historical events are
represented through photography, as well as, what additional information
can be drawn through careful investigation and reading of photographic
archival material.
While at Princeton I focused on collecting research materials taken the
period of the Greek civil war. In the department of Rare Books and
Special Collections I had the unique opportunity to study Nancy
Crawshaw's and Norman Gilbertson's photographic archives.
I studied the events these photographers focused on, and tried to discern
the motivations driving their choices of these photographic events. I also
explored the publications of Nancy Crawshaw's articles; the confidential
letters to the newspaper "Manchester Guardian;" her articles and her
photographs published in "Listener", "Illustrated", and other magazines;
the reports of Norman Gilbertson to the Quaker Relief Program during
the time they both were in Greece.
I tried to give my personal interpretations on the way foreign
photographers approached the Greek civil war as well as to investigate
the way, which their photographs are interpreted through the legends, and
texts they used to describe them. How words can interfere and affect the
meaning and the substance of the war photographs.
Furthermore, I examined the different factors, which may affect the eye
of an outsider, the country of origin, the profession's requirements, the
assignment's objectives, and the differences in cultural and traditional
inheritance, the country's history, and the distinctive collective
unconscious on the photographic process.
Besides photographs and texts of Norman Gilbertson,, taken during his
stay in Greece from 1946 to 1952, focused on the events of civil war
especially in Northern Greece, Macedonia, and Thrace, which give a
clear -sighted accurate and lively description of the period ,were
thoroughly examined.
This documentation is so detailed that viewer has the opportunity to gain
access to a global sight of the events and of the scenery where these took
place.
The photographic material I researched in the Department of Rare Books
and Special Collections was very crucial for my study to proceed further
because I had the unique opportunity to work on unpublished photos and
I feel that only in Princeton I would have the chance to have access to so
important for my PhD, photographic archives.
Finally I looked at Moses Hadas's photographic archive which great part
of is made from photoduplicating of Spyros Meletzis, the very well
known Greek photographer, personal work from the Greek Resistance
Front during the Second World War.
These archives were perfectly organized and I had the opportunity to
reproduce some slides out of the photography work of Nancy
Crawshaw's, which will help me to proceed to a deeper and more
analytical insight of this period.
I also located photographic material from "Life" and "Illustrated London
News" magazines, which gave me the opportunity to attain an expanded
view regarding the depiction of the Greek photographers. I am interested
in exploring the similarities and differences between the two points of
view - local and foreign.
I used the Firestone and Marquand Libraries in order to find bibliography
related to my topic including, books regarding history, historiography,
sociology, anthropology, semiology, photography, and photographic
essays. I also used the Internet to search for articles and books.
libraryf@princeton.edu
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