How history was told

Press photos of World War II

Some 1,200 World War II press photos have been received by Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College, thanks to a gift from photography collectors Michael Mattis and Judith Hochberg.

The images serve as a hands-on pathway into the history of the war, the uses of wartime photography and topics such as censorship and propaganda.

The collection chronicles historical moments in military and political leadership, conflict and the aftermath of the conflict. Included are photographers Henri Cartier-Bresson, Joe Rosenthal, Mike Disfarmer and Alfred Eisenstaedt, as well as includes photos from anonymous or relatively unknown photographers.

“With this generous gift from Michael and Judy, Pomona’s Benton Museum of Art will become the repository for one of the largest non-governmental collections of conflict photography from the WWII era,” said Steve Comba, Interim Director and Registrar of the Pomona College Museum of Art.

Steve Comba, Interim Director and Registrar of the Pomona College Museum of Art, browses through the WWII photography collection gifted by Michael Mattis and Judith Hochberg. Images shown include President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill at the First Quebec Conference in August 1943; a naval procedure, and Parisians celebrating with soldiers from the U.S. Fourth Infantry Division.

What sets these images apart is that most are original press photos bearing terse, type-written captions, stamps from wire services and, sometimes, crop marks and other scars from the hurried rush to press.

“Together image and text are primary sources for the study of the time and the attitudes that shaped the telling of those stories,” Comba said. “They also become available for rereading, reinterpretation in light of current understanding.”

Long-time benefactors of the College museum, Mattis and Hochberg started collecting photography as newlyweds in the early 1980s when they were doctoral students. More than 30 years later, their collection is considered one of the most comprehensive private collections of vintage photography in the United States, and one of the top photography collections in the world.

The collection will live at the Benton Museum of Art at Pomona College. The museum plans to make the photography collection available for students, researchers and others, via their online repository in late spring 2020 as well as in person when Benton Museum of Art opens in fall 2020.

– Contributed by Pomona College