“Bildkommentar to History”: Photographs of Karlo Dieneš as a Source in Historical Research

Abstract

The first part of this paper analyzes the collection of photographs and negatives by Karlo Dieneš from the City Museum of Nova Gradiška, and confirms him as the author of several well-known photographs from interwar press media and subsequently published literature. Even more importantly, the rich content of Dieneš’ collection highlights how the legacies of amateur photographers can become valuable visual sources for researching the historical context in which they were created. The publication of Dieneš’ photographs in the press or their circulation in the trade of photographs – also practiced at the time – changes our perception of visual communication methods and, consequently, the visual culture of that era. In the second part, the research points to the value of analyzing photographs that traditionally do not attract attention. By applying models developed by anthropologists or art historians (iconology) and by addressing questions posed by new political history (concerning politics “from below”) we demonstrate alternative ways of viewing and interpreting photographs of certain political events that have so far been largely dismissed as less significant. Additionally, the study emphasizes the potential of home portraits of prominent individuals. It also highlights previously overlooked values of sequential photography, which should not be seen merely as a collection from which the most attractive images are selected, but rather as a whole that offers new interpretative possibilities.