Through the eyes of a war chronicler
Exhibition opening: August 21, 2025, at 6 p.m.
On view: from August 19 to September 28, 2025
Where: the lobby of the Knights’ Hall
Author: dr. Marko Štepec
The temporary exhibition presents a selection of photographs by Stanko Oražem (1887–1965), a reserve officer in the Austro-Hungarian army during the First World War, who served as a commander of automotive and technical units on various fronts, from Galicia to Tyrol. Oražem documented the war not only as an amateur photographer of remarkable skill, but also with an artistic sensitivity that elevated his work beyond mere documentation.
Stanko Oražem holds a special place among amateur war photographers, not only because of the scope of his photographic legacy, but also because of the photographic quality of his images, since he enhanced the recognizable characteristics of wartime photography with a refined sense of aesthetics and the choice of motifs that reveal a personal, self-revelatory message. We can only suspect that he was aware of the multifaceted marks that the tragedy of war left on everyday life. The documentary value of his photographs, to which we have devoted special attention at this temporary exhibition, is not negligible.
The exhibition marks the 110th anniversary of the beginning of the battles on the Isonzo/Soča Front and the 60th anniversary of Oražem’s death. Also on display are selected personal items from the family legacy, donated to the museum together with the photographs by Mag. Vito Oražem.