Guest Editors’ Introduction

The text consists of a methodological part, pointing out which research desiderata there are related to re-enactments of the body of the “people” and the use of visual media for political purposes. Research traditions in political sociology as well as in the studies of visual culture are taken into account. It is shown that the current strong presence of the iconic and the visual in social and political life goes hand in hand with technological, mass media and (pop-) cultural transformations, as well as a re-valuation of political institutions and parties.  In addition, it is demonstraed that political debates in the present are strongly "culturalized", with a “clash” as well as a “dialogue of cultures” becoming publicly manifest, especially through the presence of images and visual stagings.

In a second part, the various articles published in this special issue are discussed and the common threads connecting them are explaines: for example in relation to contemporary visual art as a medium of (implicit) criticism of current authoritarian societies; the re-enactment of an iconic photo or the creation of photo series as opportunities for political imagination or to practice “parrēsia” (speaking truth/ Michel Foucault); how photo elicitation can give an insight into processes of meaning production in relation to migration; or how cartoons addressing corruption bring negotiations between different social and political actors to the attention of a wider audience of social media platforms.