The victory image: Imaging Israeli warfighting from Lebanon to Gaza

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

90 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

This article interrogates the concept of the ‘victory image’ in Israel as a militarized visual economy. What began as a visual illustration of warfighting became an integral part of operational considerations. My own contribution as an embedded photographer to that economy is used as a prism for larger changes in visual politics. These changes relate to the proliferation of an actuarial gaze as the overarching ordering principle of imaging in the subsequent Gaza Wars. Instead of celebratory images of military achievements, Israeli officials opted for information visualizations to convey a sense of achievement, allowing for the continuation of the ‘visual economy,’ but with Palestinian victims of indiscriminate attacks ignored.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)295–313
Number of pages19
JournalSecurity Dialogue
Volume50
Issue number4
Early online date25 Mar 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Aug 2019

Keywords

  • Israel-Palestine
  • visual politics
  • war
  • security
  • photography

Cite this