Accessing children’s historical experiences through their art: four drawings of aerial warfare from the Spanish Civil War

TY - JOUR

T1 - Accessing children’s historical experiences through their art: four drawings of aerial warfare from the Spanish Civil War

AU - Hodgson, Jack

PY - 2021/5/27

Y1 - 2021/5/27

N2 - This article considers the potential for children’s drawings to be utilized more widely as documentary evidence by historians. Children remain seen but not heard in much of history, with a noted source problem hampering efforts to address this. Drawings are a different type of ambiguous evidence but there is a compelling case for their usage, partly demonstrated by various professional uses including the acceptance of children’s drawings as evidence in courts. This article analyses four boys’ drawings of aerial conflict from the Spanish Civil War which are powerful visual reminders of the toll of war on children and exemplify the communicative power of non-linguistic sources to a heavily textual discipline.

AB - This article considers the potential for children’s drawings to be utilized more widely as documentary evidence by historians. Children remain seen but not heard in much of history, with a noted source problem hampering efforts to address this. Drawings are a different type of ambiguous evidence but there is a compelling case for their usage, partly demonstrated by various professional uses including the acceptance of children’s drawings as evidence in courts. This article analyses four boys’ drawings of aerial conflict from the Spanish Civil War which are powerful visual reminders of the toll of war on children and exemplify the communicative power of non-linguistic sources to a heavily textual discipline.

KW - Children's art

KW - Spanish Civil War

KW - Children's History

U2 - 10.1080/13642529.2021.1928393

DO - 10.1080/13642529.2021.1928393

M3 - Article

SN - 1364-2529

VL - 25

SP - 145

EP - 165

JO - RETHINKING HISTORY

JF - RETHINKING HISTORY

IS - 2

ER -