Creator: Robert Capa
Title: FRANCE. W.W.II. Liberation of France by the Allied Troops
Date: 1944
Collection: Magnum
Description: Taken during De Gaulle's speech, after the liberation of the city (Chartres), on August 23rd, 1944. In the previous month, the Allied forces had opened a second front in Normandy, in an attempt to liberate France.
I chose this photo because I have always been interested in WWII, most especially the role of France. I love the expression of the little boy, it's almost as if he doesn't care that he's getting his photo taken as he's picking his nose.
It's also incredibly jarring to see an innocent little boy, obliviously picking his nose while sitting on top of a tank made to destroy human life. The tank's gun points and the little boy both face the viewer. It's powerful.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't you want to know why he is up there? Who put him there? Surely the combination of the image of youth/innocence with the menacing machine is intentional - what does that tell you? Could this picture have been taken before the liberation?
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