Visual Culture

Abstract

The unauthorized movement of people across national borders, on land and sea, continues to be a matter of life and death for many migrants. In 2022, more than 2,000 people died attempting to cross the Mediterranean (Statista [2023]) and more than 800 died on the US–Mexico border (Villarreal [2022]). In both Europe and the US, migration remains a significant political issue and one that has a strong visual component: it is through visual representations of boats, bodies, and borders that most non-migrants apprehend the phenomenon. Visual surveillance from the air and at crossing points is a key part of state attempts to control migration. With the increasing availability of smartphones and social media platforms, migrants themselves are also visually documenting and sharing their experiences. This chapter focuses on six texts published within 2022 which explore aspects of visual culture in relation to migration. This has several facets: representation of migrants and associated colonial tropes; visual and ‘postvisual’ surveillance of migrant bodies; and digital self-representation and reclaiming the gaze through creative practices. In line with this, the chapter is divided into three sections: 1. Visual Policing; 2. Visual Narration; 3. Artistic Disruptions.