Words on Pictures

"Identification marks on wings of army pigeon"  The New York Public Library Digital Collections . 1918. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/18f36040-c2f6-0138-c9f3-0b13222c6397 Below is an extended excerpt from Javitz's speech, entitled Words on Pictures , given at the  Massachusetts Library Association, Boston, Massachusetts, on January 28, 1943.   At the peak of her career, Javitz encapsulates her far reaching and prescient vision into the use and misuse of pictures in everyday society. Much of it still applies today. The photographs following are intended to show examples of pictures reflecting the subjects discussed.  ~~~      "The mounting flood of pictures is permeating all of our lives, and its impact leaves deep impression on our minds. This unexploited pool of power can be tapped to produce ideas, stimulate processes of thinking and provoke action...       These pictures are not art, they are not pictur...

Reading war news aboard streetcar. San Francisco, California. 1941.  John Collier.  The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York  Public Library. Pictures at War Did you know that the New York Public Library's Picture Collection was a key resource for the Armed Forces during World War II? Here is an excerpt from the Annual Report for 1943: "The enemy loomed large as the most popular subject in picture requests during the year. Since a soldier is taught to bayonet the enemy and not some undefined abstraction, he must learn to recognize that enemy; a bombardier must be able to visualize the appearance of the factory which is to be his target; a designer of camouflage must have the specific knowledge of the shape of forests in the battle area as seen from the air. War leaders require pictorial surveys preceding decisions of strategy and action. Direct information for the use of the Army, Navy and Marine Corps was...