Peter van Agtmael – Look at the U.S.A.: A Diary of War and Home

Review by Gerhard Clausing •

There are a number of reviews of photobooks about warfare that I have reviewed over the years. You can enter war in the search box and look at as many of them as you like. But none of them are as comprehensive, as complex, and as personal as this one, in which Peter van Agtmael takes us on a journey that looks behind the scenes over a period of some 20 years, from the Iraq War to the assault on the Capitol in Washington.

The award-winning American documentary photographer and Magnum member Peter van Agtmael has produced a monumental record of the post-9/11 era. The photographs are accompanied by many personal observations and quotes by the author. The images are printed well; the layout keeps you engaged. Particularly heart-wrenching moments show military actions on the various battlefields, as well as the aftermath, including many casualties on both sides. One would hope that photobooks like this one would push participants toward using negotiations as a more positive way of resolving conflicts, instead of conducting bloody combat in the manner of our ancestors.

Between observing the “theaters of war,” van Agtmael also spent time back home, illustrating the continuation of customary events. There are celebrations of holidays, gatherings of groups like the Ku Klux Klan, patriotic parades, and other familiar cultural happenings. Some of the well-to-do are depicted in opulent surroundings, while more average citizens are given to less fancy activities. The grieving families are shown coping with the fate of their loved ones.

The images, as expected, demonstrate a very graphic and photojournalistic style. This has the effect of putting us right in the center of the action, creating a very powerful feeling of immediacy, almost like being there yourself. One of the early double pages (image 1 below) shows the uncertainty and unpredictability of events by means of two out-of-focus images, which could be interpreted as an underlying principle for some of what went on in general as well. We see an image of a group of soldiers landing somewhere, most of whom were later wounded or killed. We see the image of a wounded soldier at a hospital, as well as that of a civilian who was blinded.

Toward the end of the book, it is particularly disconcerting to observe video shots of a former president admitting that some of the warfare may not have been necessary. Hindsight is easier than lack of contemporary insight, I suppose. Equally disturbing is the photograph of the large crowd bad-mouthing the press that reports all these things. Patriotism should be defined as having enough love of country to criticize the things that need to be improved. The overall effect of this important project is to give us an overview of what might be done better the next time around. Hope this well-intentioned advice is heeded!

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Gerhard Clausing, Editor of the PhotoBook Journal, is an author and artist from Southern California.

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Peter van Agtmael – Look at the U.S.A.: A Diary of War and Home

Photographer: Peter van Agtmael (born in Washington, DC, now based in Paris, France)

Texts: Peter van Agtmael

Language: English

Design: Bonnie Briant Design

Hardbound with Illustrated cover; 353 pages, paginated, with 186 images; 7.6 x 9.6 inches (19.5 x 24.3 cm); printed in Slovenia by GPS Group; ISBN 978-0-500-0-02702-8

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Articles and photographs published in the PhotoBook Journal may not be reproduced without the permission of the PhotoBook Journal staff and the photographer(s). All images, texts, and designs are under copyright by the authors and publishers.