Research and Teaching with Photographs: Historical and Educational Photography Resources in Illustrated Magazines (Majorca, Spain, 1902-1936)

Abstract

The origins of the illustrated press on the island of Majorca (Spain) date to the last two decades of the 19th century when visual records received a major push thanks to the consolidation of new graphic printing techniques, favouring more illustration and photography in the local press - an aspect that further strengthened in the early 20th century in news magazines. Subsequently, and running parallel to the development of international print media, photography was introduced into different media publications in Majorca, often adopting the term 'illustrated magazine'. And the news reports in these general or specialised illustrated publications are precisely where we come across different photographic and/or photojournalism reports on schools and education in general in Majorca, as well as illustrated advertising for education establishments. This article will offer an approach and analysis of the photographic resources contained in the different illustrated magazines on the island from the first three decades of the 20th century. We will also look at the image of schools from the period and the out-of-school education they provided, as well as the possible potential and uses the images represent for didactics in the history of education field.