Visual Archive Southeastern Europe (VASE)
The main objective of the Visual Archive Southeastern Europe is to assemble historical and contemporary visual materials on Southeastern Europe. VASE seeks to draw attention to the visual as primary source, to enhance visual studies as a technique and method and thereby enrich the primarily text-based historical-anthropological research. By providing different types of images – e. g. photos and postcards – VASE aims at reflecting the (self-) images of Southeastern Europe, both among the academic community as well as on society at large. It may not be used for commercial purposes. The main objective of the Visual Archive Southeastern Europe is to assemble historical and contemporary visual materials on Southeastern Europe. VASE seeks to draw attention to the visual as primary source, to enhance visual studies as a technique and method and thereby enrich the primarily text-based historical-anthropological research. By providing different types of images – e. g. photos and postcards – VASE aims at reflecting the (self-) images of Southeastern Europe, both among the academic community as well as on society at large. It may not be used for commercial purposes.
The initial idea for the database as well as a first version of VASE were developed by Barbara Derler and Georg Piwonka as part of the “Family structures and ethnicity – case studies from Macedonia” project (funded by the Austrian Science Fund, project number P 15533, 2002-2005).
VASE was then further and fully developed within the project “Visualizing Family, Gender Relations, and the Body. The Balkans approx. 1860-1950” funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF, Project number P 22104-G18, 2010-2014). Currently the database contains approximately 2.500 images. The images were provided by partner institutions and individual collectors in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria and Serbia. Through research and teaching at the University of Graz, Institute of History, Research Area Southeast European History and Anthropology VASE will continuously be expanded.
