Carrying in the Wounded During the Height of the Battle

Several of Frank Hurley’s photograph are very controversial. We always expect photographs (from this and comparable eras) to be photo-realistic and authentic. Hurley as “the artist” felt that a whole picture and experience of the war is important as an artistic expression. For some of his photograph, Hurley combined the two or more negatives by overlapping the scenes to create a new situation made up of separate events. This picture is an example. You’ll see the explosion in the distance, with wounded men being led to shelter, while soldier seemingly oblivious to the wounded are looking back. The main figure pictured looks like a German soldier as well who of course would not be sitting so casually with Allied troops. (Warning: Combined Negatives used to ‘create’ the scene you see).