Domesticated Simulacra: The Dialectics of Power in Family Photographic Archives
Abstract
This article investigates the power dynamics present in family photographic archives from the Soviet Union, spanning from World War I to Stalin’s death in 1953. An analysis of discovered family photographs, alongside additional artistic interventions, assesses how family photography serves as a multifaceted tool of ideological power, manifested through what appear to be impartial acts of domestic documentation. The study presents the concept of “domesticated simulacra” to clarify how family photographs gain authenticity through their role in home rituals while concealing collective trauma. By employing artistic research methods, the article illustrates how the tangible aspects of family photos influence individual and shared memory. Through the chemical modification of archival images and their integration with Soviet-era technical drawings, this research examines how family photos became venues where socio-political narratives were domesticated, challenged, and reproduced. The findings demonstrate that these personal archives functioned as spaces for negotiating, sharing, and occasionally challenging power dynamics across generations. Ultimately, the study reveals that family photos are not merely vessels of personal memories but complex discursive spaces where ideological beliefs are asserted and contested. Particular analytical attention is given to how the apparent neutrality of domestic documentation systematically excludes traumatic collective experiences, substituting them with optimistic visual representations that foster a form of collective amnesia. This study reconceptualises forgetting not as passive loss but as a nuanced form of resistance – a strategic mnemonic mechanism through which individuals and communities navigate oppressive political systems and cultural hegemonies.
Key words
Artistic Research. Domesticated Simulacra. Family Photography. Photographic Materiality. Visual Ideology.
Stakle, A. (2025). Domesticated Simulacra: The Dialectics of Power in Family Photographic Archives. European Journal of Media, Art & Photography, 13(1), 84-91. https://doi.org/10.34135/ejmap-25-01-04