What is the most important picture EVER?

kaci_beeler · Post by **kaci_beeler** » December 5th, 2006, 1:59 am

Early American life, the more realistic picture of American life, under the gild.

Also,

This shows so much in one photograph. There's just these college kids. They were having a peace protest.
The nature of violence. Compassion, fear, dread, death. The vulnerability of life.

York99 · Post by **York99** » December 5th, 2006, 2:25 am

valetoile wrote:justin york, i hate you for distorting my screen and making me side scroll. I hate side scrolling!

Fixed.

Now give Daddy some sugar.

ratliff · Post by **ratliff** » December 5th, 2006, 8:20 am

sara_anm8r wrote:The first picture of Earth from outter space. It made the world realize that we are all one people, that we share this planet, and that we have to work to live together in peace & harmony with eachother, and our environment.

I haven't read the paper this morning, but I'm not sure that's a done deal just yet.

sara farr · Post by **sara farr** » December 5th, 2006, 8:23 am

ratliff wrote:
sara_anm8r wrote:The first picture of Earth from outter space. It made the world realize that we are all one people, that we share this planet, and that we have to work to live together in peace & harmony with eachother, and our environment.
Oh, really?

Well it has been a while since the photo was taken, and the bloom has been rubbed off a bit.

Wesley · Post by **Wesley** » December 5th, 2006, 11:22 am

Sara, the "Blue Marble" photo as it is often called is a spectacular choice and was way up my list. As was Gene's Earthrise.

For scoial, I thought a long time, but I'm coming back to this, the Fat Man cloud over Nagasaki. The power is awesome and the aftermath devastating. Only two nuclear bombs have ever been used, and we dropped them both, yet their mere existance has shaken world politics to the ground for going on 70 years. Even now the second biggest international debate behind Iraq is a nuclear Korea or Iran. This phot is utter destruction. This is utter waste. But it is also beautiful because it reminds us of how powerful we are, how cruel we can be to one another, and how even a technology this destructive may yet have peaceful ends in providing power and space transportation.

arthursimone · Post by **arthursimone** » December 5th, 2006, 11:45 am

I second the mushroom cloud as an important photo

the first two bombs were not only important events, but the images a) scared the shit out of the russians b) scared the shit out of the rest of the world c) scared the shit out of americans in a way that the phrase "atomic bomb" never would.

photographs and film clips made the absurd hypothetical into an obscene reality. the realistic portrayl of events through photographs sparks outrage that can carry to the other side of the globe.

holocaust denyin'? not so fast, here's photographic proof.
starving african denyin'? not so fast, check this out.

York99 · Post by **York99** » December 5th, 2006, 12:34 pm

On a similar note, what is the most important drawing ever made?
I think we can all agree that for social and scientific, they are one in the same: http://www.glitchnyc.com/images/fluxFull.jpg

TexasImprovMassacre · December 5th, 2006, 2:56 pm

York99 wrote:On a similar note, what is the most important drawing ever made?
I think we can all agree that for social and scientific, they are one in the same: http://www.glitchnyc.com/images/fluxFull.jpg

This is the most absolute truth i've ever seen.

Mike · Post by **Mike** » December 5th, 2006, 4:59 pm

I think this is one of the most powerful pictures for me. It was used as the memorial at Arlington National Cemetary, and I was lucky enough to see the original statue as well as its' copy at Parris Island.

Asaf · Post by **Asaf** » December 5th, 2006, 5:20 pm

From a social standpoint, this one is high in importance as it became the icon of human rights advocacy:

As did this one:

gene · Post by **gene** » December 5th, 2006, 11:32 pm

The above images that Asaf posted are very powerful images indeed.
The "tank man" image has inspired civil disobedience around the world.
There is a good Frontline episode about him here

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tankman/

I have noticed one thing:if you watch a video of him and his encouter with the tank,

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... nown+rebel

he gets in the way of the tank, he climbs on top of it, and he even bangs on
the hatch. The whole time, he holds on to a shopping bag in each hand.
Its like he was thinking:"I'll probably die, but if I make it out alive, I'm getting
out with all my stuff!"

What's in those bags?!? Dinner? His laundry? Hmmm. I like to contemplate
that question from time to time.

The second photo still affects me every time I see it. It has an interesting
story. The guy with the gun, Nguyen Loan, later opened a pizza place in Virginia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nguyen_Ngoc_Loan

The photographer won a Pulitzer prize for it, but he later regreted taking the
photo and he apologized to Loan for it and called him a hero.

kbadr · Post by **kbadr** » December 6th, 2006, 12:41 am

Gene, I always think the *same* thing about that first photo. I'm fixated on that bag he's carrying.

Wasn't the second photo a still from film footage? Or is there just film footage or a similar, equally brutal, event?

arthursimone · Post by **arthursimone** » December 6th, 2006, 12:57 am

"tank man" was a poignant image from a poignant moment in history... but did it really *change* anything? the chinese government is as oppressive as ever, I don't think it did.

vietnam... hmmm, what was the moment that turned things around for the american public? the execution photo? the naked girl running from napalm? the dead students? john kerry in congress? bodybags? sweaty, sweaty evil nixon?

TexasImprovMassacre · December 6th, 2006, 2:18 am

This picture completely changed my concept cool.

York99 · Post by **York99** » December 6th, 2006, 12:11 pm

arthursimone wrote:sweaty evil nixon?

What I wouldn't give to have a Republican like Nixon now. By today's standards, he's left of Democrats.