While searching the Internet for obscure images of food from the 1970s a few years ago, Parisian photo researcher Matthew Nicol stumbled upon a treasure trove of freely available photographs recently declassified by the U.S. military. I did.
Images taken by experts over the decades leading up to the 1990s depicted people in various military uniforms.
However, as Nicolle explained, we can only speculate about the photo’s original purpose. Despite his efforts, the Army revealed little about its collection of approximately 14,100 images.
Mr Nicol, 46, a former editor of Le Monde newspaper, was nevertheless inspired to embark on a project aimed not only at keeping the photographs out of the shadows of the archives, but also making them part of a wider debate. I was not deterred.
Noting how the clinical cool of the photographs, with their pale pastel backgrounds and expressionless young subjects, resembled modern fashion photography, he compiled 350 of them into a new book, Fashion Army. I have summarized it in The book is both a masterfully produced photo album and a meta-commentary on what author Bruno Chechel, of SPBH Editions, which published the book, calls “the interplay between military functions and the fashion industry.” be.
Although the selected images are presented through the lens of fashion, the intended purpose of the specific garments depicted was not lost on Nicol. “They are manufactured for use as killing machines,” he said.
In a recent interview, edited and condensed, Mr. Nichol described his adventures into the endless slipstream of Internet images and the kinds of conversations he hopes his book will inspire.
Let’s talk about the evolution of this project.
I was searching the internet for period images of 70’s food. I was particularly interested in the food of the survivalist movement, and suddenly I found one, then two, then ten, then a hundred, then thousands of images of people taken in the United States. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center near Boston.
The images showed all kinds of people, from secretaries to soldiers, paratroopers to bomb disposal experts, wearing prototype military uniforms for every purpose.
What intrigued you about that?
These are period images, but they weren’t that old, like the 70s, 80s, or 90s. The subjects were young people in their 20s and 30s, and their photos and clothing were very modern. These could have been shot for an Acne Studios campaign, or a Martin Margiela or Balenciaga campaign.
This raises the question of how official army documents become public domain.
That’s a big part of this story. After discovering them, I spent months trying to find out more. There is very little metadata. I contacted the U.S. Army’s Natick Center, but received no response for six months. Eventually, after about a year, the media director responded and said he could submit a memorandum to the military authorizing questions. I submitted a memorandum with 25 important questions, which the media director finally responded to.
What are you talking about?
The response was, “You can ask questions, but I will not answer them.”
that’s it?
He confirmed that the images have been declassified and are in the public domain. They exist copyright-free as part of Massachusetts’ Digital Commonwealth. Anyone can do whatever they want with them.
Particularly shocking when it comes to combat equipment is the fact that designers so often plagiarize from military uniforms that camouflage patterns are just another element in the toolbox.
However, it must be borne in mind that these are garments intended to improve the daily working life of people who may be at war.
My choice for this book was ostensibly about fashion. The photographer is of course a professional, so the photos are stylish and attractive. Even though the photos were taken 40 years ago, the subjects are posed just as they are today – although I’m pretty sure the people photographed are not models.
Still, we must avoid finding these images seductive. Viewing them that way avoids the question of the garment’s ultimate practicality. I see this as an opportunity to reflect, discuss, and educate.
I must say that this archive is truly a discovery.
Clément Chéroux, president of the Fondation Cartier-Bresson and an expert in regional photography, looked at the collection and said, “What you have is incredible.” But, I’m an image editor and a collector by profession, but I don’t have the money to buy things. Therefore, I am happiest when I am able to find and recirculate lost images.
I had a large exhibition of 150 photographs printed on human scale and this book at a large photography festival in Arles, but what I want is that I can’t I want people in other fields to do what I have done. .
What is it?
We hope that fashion experts, textile experts and historians will pick up this archive and start exploring the meaning of it all.
Works created by Antonio De Luca
