Photographs, history and memories of the Nazi Occupation exhibition extended to May

Are photos part of the collective propaganda, the photographer also (deliberately or inadvertently) partaking in its formation? Does a photo reflects what its photographer hold true, is it part of his framing? Does the interpretation of a picture change according to its photographer’s point of view and to its viewers’ own convictions?

Fourteen months following its opening in February 2016, and having twice been extended to a final closing date of May 21, the much-discussed exhibition that gave many the opportunity for multiple readings of the concept of photography as well as history is, has once again invited a series of questions and thoughts. This first-ever display of 170 unknown photographs from the period of the German occupation, titled “On the sidelines of the war: The Thessaloniki of Occupation (1941-1944) through the photography collection of Byron Mitos”. The occasion for the most interesting discussion was the publication of the collective volume “Representations of Occupation: Photography, history, memory”. The bilingual edition of 150 pages, rich in photos, contains the announcements of distinguished researchers from Greece and abroad, who participated in the workshop on the same topic, held last year at the Museum of Byzantine Culture.