Swastikas, Symbols and Art

[kaishowing]

Reclaimed Symbol

 

[robopro]

And how is the photographer supposed to do this? The photograph in this discussion was photographed in America, in what looks to be a time long before Hitler and his perverted gang became known outside of the rowdy Beer Cellars they infested and used a corrupted form of the swastika.

I agree. I'm not sure if the original symbol was called a swastika, but I know it had absolutely nothing to do with 'intolerance and hate', and is, I believe, thousands of years old. I don't think anyone in America even knew what a nazi was in 1920...

 

[joshverd]

For the same reasons posted in the original post I think the use of symbols in art is extremely useful. In my opinion most good art comes from the use of good symbol/subject interplay.

Symbols allow the view to have a personal interpretation and connection with the image in any way that fits them. The art becomes more of a mirror than a window.

 

[Jim Jones]

Not many years later the Union flag could have been considered a symbol of the greed that led to brutal oppression and sometimes massacre of the American Indian. Both Confederate and Union flags are, for better or worse, a significant symbol of American history. The German Swastika is both a symbol of the dramatic rebirth of a devastated nation, and of the most diabolical scourge of the past several centuries. In the context of history, these flags are useful symbols of their times. Censoring the symbol is like denying the truth. Flags and other symbols can also be used as a symbol of one's personality. If someone in our time wants to wear the German swastika, I appreciate the warning. We've also used another disquieting symbol, the skull and crossbones, on poison containers.