Vaux (Chateau Thierry Sector) 1917 - 1918

Edward Steichen made this photograph, Vaux (Chateau Thierry Sector), and well, it's just an absolutely devastating scene. Look at the way Steichen has captured the obliterated townscape after battle. I can only imagine what it might have been like to fly over this scene, what he might have been thinking when he made it. So much suffering, so much destruction. The grey scale is so complete it's almost like the world is dead. The tonal range feels like a metaphor for the loss of life. It's a powerful reminder of the human cost of war. Like Goya, Steichen confronts us with the brutal reality of conflict, but also with the resilience of the human spirit amidst devastation. This photographic image is an ongoing conversation, an exchange of ideas, about war and trauma. It is a powerful and thought-provoking work.