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Memories of World War II:
Photographs from the Archives of the Associated Press
May 28?August 7, 2005
On Memorial Day 2004, as veterans of World War II converged on Washington for the dedication of a monument to global victory 60 years ago, their achievements and sacrifices were further recalled in an exhibition of photographs from the archives of the Associated Press. That show, "Memories of World War II," came to the Museum from May 28 through August 7, 2005. During the war, nearly 200 AP reporters and photographers fanned out around the globe. Five AP reporters lost their lives; seven others won Pulitzer Prizes. As the main source of war news for most of the nation's newspapers, the AP offered Americans a daily view of the conflict.
The best of these images made up this exhibition--a spectrum of 121 photos from the war and the home front, ranging from the classic Iwo Jima flag-raising to women workers in a Douglas aircraft plant. Familiar scenes of Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and British and American troops hitting Normandy beaches on D-Day were juxtaposed with scores of pictures not seen in decades. Photographs showed Hitler and Mussolini at the peak of fascist power, Winston Churchill in unmistakable silhouette, and Nazi SS troops herding defiant Jews after the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. "Memories of World War II" was a deeply moving exhibition for older audiences and brought a deeper understanding of the war to younger visitors. |