Pulitzer photos evoke emotion, remembrance
By Ines Min
Staff reporter
All it takes is the span of time to exhale. Within a split-second window, an opportunity to click the shutter can, at times, alter an entire life. Photographs not only serve to create memories, they are a means in which to communicate with the world.
A comprehensive photo exhibition of Pulitzer Prize winning photographs opened this week at the Hangaram Design Museum at the Seoul Arts Center in southern Seoul. The traveling exhibition has grown throughout the years, reaching Korea again in time for the 60th anniversary of the Korean War (1950-53).
The chronological exhibition begins in 1942 ― when the prize was first awarded ― but quickly makes its way through the decades. Each year's winner is presented with a short explanation (Korean only), but no words are needed. Many of the images are recognizable at first sight, while others render physical speech useless.
Edward T. Adam's infamous ``Viet Cong Execution'' can be seen, as well as Steve Ludlum's breathless shot of the World Trade Center attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Images of starving African families, hurricane-torn Haiti, workers' strikes, the legacy of baseball icon Babe Ruth, and countless tragedies and triumphs line the walls of the gallery.
The subjects are universally known, but the emotions behind each picture are as poignant as the day they were taken. Instantaneous shots such as that of Stanley J. Forman's ``Boston Fire,'' which captures the fall of a young woman and a child from a broken fire escape, or Yasushi Nagao's ``Assassination of Asanuma,'' manage to envelope an entire situation, atmosphere and stream of consciousness through the viewfinder.
Also on display is a photo by Max Desfor, a former Associated Press photographer, who took the famous shot of Korean refugees climbing the Taedong River Railway bridge in an attempt to escape the incoming North Korean and Chinese forces during the freezing winter winds. The image became one of the representative photos of the war, depicting the tragedy of the civilians caught up in the conflict.
The northern Korean bridge was just one example of the adverse pulls of the two ideologies. At the time, Seoul was in the midst of politic turmoil: The city had been taken by communist forces before being repelled by the U.N. and General Douglas MacArthur.
A range of wars is featured at the exhibition, from guerilla warfare in Rhodesia ― an unrecognized state in southern Africa ― to Nick Ut's image of young Kim Phuc running naked from a 1972 Napalm attack in Vietnam.
But the exhibition shows more than the dark history of the world, with photos such as William C. Beall's perfect grasp of a child's innocence in ``Faith and Confidence'' (1958). In the picture, an officer patiently persuades an inquisitive 2-year-old to step back into the crowd and out of the chaos of a street parade. Representing the most recent major political success in the U.S. is the feature series depicting President Barack Obama after his election win.
The exhibition is a moving one, each photo freezing in time an instant in human history. Viewers will be hard-pressed to ignore the magnetic pull of each of the images and will wonder about the fates of the subjects.
``Capture the Moment'' is on display through Aug. 29 at the Hangaram Design Museum of the Seoul Arts Center. The exhibition also includes a screening of the documentary ``Moment of Impact: Stories of the Pulitzer Prize Photographs'' and a display case of classic Leica cameras and Telexes. Located a 15 minute walk from exit 5 of Nambu Bus Terminal on subway line 3. Visit www.pulitzerkorea.com.