When the Austrian surgeon Lorenz Böhler created his machine-like system of rationalized fracture care behind the trenches in WWI, he documented the outcome of his treatment in a striking way. He took photographs of his patients, lined up naked, and performing synchronous movements . In my talk, I am going to explore the rationale of this unusual way of representing bodies. I will put Böhler’s images in the context of contemporary orthopedic photography and discuss parallels and possible cultural resonances with scientific management, Vienna Modernism and revue girls shows.
