The Aesthetics of Terrorism

Abstract

The 'Aesthetics of Terrorism' is a term I use that encompasses various narratives with regard to the visual representation of 9/11 and the Red Army Faction and takes into account changes in practices in photography, aesthetics, representation, and the nature of terror and terrorism. Photographs play a significant role in the reception of terrorism and the trends and contexts that have developed in the reception suggest not only methods to deal with tragedy and trauma, but also preemptive strategies to counter the aesthetic potential of the photograph to influence, subvert, and indeed terrorize, established institutions of art, morality, history and nation. This dissertation focuses on the aesthetics of terrorism and how media photographs are used in the construction of postmemory. Chapter one is devoted to discussions on whether and under what circumstances a terrorist attack can be compared to an artwork. Chapter two is a case study of the deathbed photograph of RAF member Holger Meins. Chapter three is a case study of the photograph of a man falling from the World Trade Center that has come to be known as "The Falling Man." Chapter four focuses on the appropriation of media photographs into films about the RAF, paying special attention to Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum, Todesspiel, and Der Baader-Meinhof Komplex. This dissertation was conceived as a step towards visual literacy and understanding the contemporary representation and reception of terrorism in order to understand the visual language that is used to construct and manipulate history and memory.