Introduction

Abstract

The introduction presents the book’s primary concepts: depth of field, expanding field, photographic practices. It considers the work of critics such as Rosalind Krauss, Nelly Richard, John Tagg, Susan Sontag, and Ariella Azoulay. It begins by explaining the depth of field; then, it analyses the mechanisms devised by the military and officialist media to control the visual field and the depth of field. Two publications produced by the military after the coup (Libro Blanco, Chile Ayer Hoy) are considered. The analysis underscores the prominence photography had in the fabrication of cover-ups and in the consolidation of the military message. In the second part, the terms "expanding field" and "photographic practice" are explained and the significance of the documentary mode is emphasized. I reconsider key critical formulations that emerged in the Chilean cultural field in the mid-seventies that were inspired by the incorporation of photography into artistic practices, but that were nevertheless dismissive of documentary practices that did not emerge within the artistic field. In the last part, I introduce the organizations and the different photographic practices they devised to disseminate their denunciatory work, challenge the dictatorship, and counter the spread of cover-ups and misinformation by the military and officialist media.