'That was a posed photo': Reflections on the process of combining oral histories with institutional photographs

Stein, JA

'That was a posed photo': Reflections on the process of combining oral histories with institutional photographs

Stein, JA

Permalink

Publisher:: Oral History Association of Australia (OHAA)
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Oral History Association of Australia Journal, 2013, 35 (1), pp. 49 - 57
Issue Date:: 2013-09-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	Final.pdf	Published Version	471.95 kB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Stein, JA https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7031-9728	en_US
dc.date.issued	2013-09-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Oral History Association of Australia Journal, 2013, 35 (1), pp. 49 - 57	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0158-7366	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/30297
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/27848
dc.description.abstract	This paper emerged from observations following oral history interviews with thirty people who worked at the New South Wales (NSW) Government Printing Office, Sydney between 1933 and 1989. This project incorporates photographs from the NSW Government Printing Office collection: institutional images taken within this public service workplace. This paper describes how the use of institutional photographs during the oral history interview can provide insight into the disjuncture between bureaucratic representations of an organisation, and former employees' recollections of working life. Oral history interviews indicate that these former employees possessed a confident and playful awareness of the 'grey area' between institutional representation and everyday practice, and they performed an active role in the shaping of some of these situations. this paper engages with oral history literature on the relationship between oral testimony and photographs, and opens up the fuel to include the use of institutional photographs in the interview process, rather than personal or family images, which have often been the focus of previous research in this area.	en_US
dc.publisher	Oral History Association of Australia (OHAA)	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Oral History Association of Australia Journal	en_US
dc.title	'That was a posed photo': Reflections on the process of combining oral histories with institutional photographs	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	1	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	35	en_US
utslib.for	1203 Design Practice and Management	en_US
utslib.for	1999 Other Studies in Creative Arts and Writing	en_US
utslib.for	2103 Historical Studies	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building/School of Design
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.consider-herdc	true	en_US
pubs.issue	1	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	35	en_US

Abstract:

This paper emerged from observations following oral history interviews with thirty people who worked at the New South Wales (NSW) Government Printing Office, Sydney between 1933 and 1989. This project incorporates photographs from the NSW Government Printing Office collection: institutional images taken within this public service workplace. This paper describes how the use of institutional photographs during the oral history interview can provide insight into the disjuncture between bureaucratic representations of an organisation, and former employees' recollections of working life. Oral history interviews indicate that these former employees possessed a confident and playful awareness of the 'grey area' between institutional representation and everyday practice, and they performed an active role in the shaping of some of these situations. this paper engages with oral history literature on the relationship between oral testimony and photographs, and opens up the fuel to include the use of institutional photographs in the interview process, rather than personal or family images, which have often been the focus of previous research in this area.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/27848