Section 1: What do we mean by the visual politics of migration?

1.1 What is at stake?

A recent UN Refugee Agency report indicates that the number of forcibly displaced people in the world reached a record 122.6 million in 2024, of whom more than 43 million are refugees ^[1]. Among these are 6.8 million refugees from Ukraine recorded globally ^[2].

This unprecedented level of displacement is driven by a combination of factors, including:

• climate change,
• ongoing conflicts,
• political instability,
• economic inequality in various regions.

These dynamics highlight the critical need to examine how migration and displacement are represented and understood worldwide.

One crucial aspect of contemporary migration studies is the analysis of its visual representation in media, political communication, and the visual and performative arts.

Since the publication of the seminal work A Seventh Man by Berger and Mohr (1975), which combined images and poetic narratives to explore labor migration, there has been a sustained interest in developing methodologies to analyze the visual imagery of migration and displacement.

1.2 What is the ‘visual turn’?

The ‘visual turn’ (Mitchel 1994, Gottfried and Mitchell 2009) in the humanities and social sciences has further reinforced the importance of studying how migration is framed through images. Visual narratives shape public perception, influence policy debates, and construct social identities.

Visual methodologies open up new possibilities for understanding migration. They raise theoretical and ethical questions about:

• creating and sharing images;
• the objectivity and subjectivity of representation;
• the power dynamics involved in visual storytelling (Kunz et al. 2021).

In recent decades, media and art have emerged as powerful tools in shaping perceptions, constructing narratives, and influencing public discourse on migration. Malkki (1996) identifies media imagery of refugees as “a key vehicle in the elaboration of a transnational social imagination of refugeeness” (234).

Beyond traditional media portrayals, Ball (2021, 285-286) argues that other visual modes – such as diagrams, maps, films, video diaries, collages, street art, and sculptures – play an equally significant role in shaping public understandings of migration, offering new perspectives on the lived experiences of displaced individuals.

1.3 How do visual-centric media influence public discourse?

“We live in a visual age … Images surround everything we do. This omnipresence of images is political and has changed fundamentally how we live and interact in today’s world” (Bleiker 2018).

Digital media, saturated with visuals, have become a powerful tool that shapes public discourse and our individual perceptions. The visual-centric media platforms also have redefined how we perceive and understand conflicts, humanitarian crises, and migration.

The aesthetic and performance parameters of the platforms, underpinned by algorithmic mechanisms, amplify specific narratives, reinforce pre-existing biases and prioritize certain types of engagement, provoking strong emotional reactions.

The rapid circulation of images of displacement and suffering embeds them in larger political discourses, influencing policy debates and humanitarian responses.

As a result, many recent studies focus their attention on:

• the use and misuse of such images;
• how they are framed by different actors;
• the ethical implications of their dissemination;
• their role in shaping public perceptions of migrants and refugees.

1.4 How are refugees portrayed in visual media?

The portrayal of refugees in visual media holds the potential to either cultivate empathy and solidarity or reinforce stereotypes and discrimination (Bleiker et al. 2013; Chouliaraki and Stolic 2017).

Often, media and political actors employ specific visual symbols and metaphors to frame migration as “an alarming situation beyond the control of the majority community,” adopting urgent tones and cinematic codes that depict migration as a physical and societal threat to the dominant community’s ethos (Swadesh and Hooda 2024).

A prominent example of visual tropes in migration representation is the recurring depiction of migration as a ‘flow’ or a ‘wave’. Such imagery often portrays migrants as a faceless mass, with photographs taken from a distance that prevent eye contact or individual recognition. This aesthetic choice reinforces narratives of migration as an overwhelming, impersonal phenomenon beyond the control of the state actors.

1.5 Can visual media challenge dominant narratives of migration?

The representations we discussed in the previous sub-section (1.3) reinforce stereotypes and negative perceptions. However, visual media also have the transformative capacity to humanize displaced individuals and challenge dominant political narratives.

A powerful example is the iconic photograph of Alan Kurdi, a young Syrian boy who drowned in the Mediterranean Sea on September 2, 2015 (Fig. 2.4).

His lifeless body, in a red T-shirt, blue shorts, and small shoes, was found washed ashore on a Turkish beach near Bodrum. The image, captured by Turkish photojournalist Nilüfer Demir, shows the toddler lying face-down in the sand, his arms resting by his sides as gentle waves lap at his fragile body. The stark contrast between the child’s small, motionless body and the vastness of the sea vividly encapsulated the human cost of forced displacement, transforming the image into a powerful symbol of the refugee crisis.

As the journalist Joel Gunter noted, “the picture has in some way changed, rather than just documented, the refugee crisis unfolding into Europe” (Gunter 2015) ^[3]

The photograph quickly went viral, sparking international reactions and led to renewed calls for policy change, greater humanitarian aid, and a shift in public discourse surrounding refugees. Thousands of people rallied to support refugees, donating money, supplies, and even offering their homes to those in need. Charities and aid organizations saw a surge in donations, reporting unprecedented levels of public engagement (Henley et al. 2015)^[4]

The wide mediatization of the photo also shifted the media representation and political discourse on refugees in Europe. Papers switched their wording of the asylum-seekers from economic ‘migrants’ to ‘refugees’ fleeing from war and persecution (Hussein 2020).^[5]

The image of Alan Kurdi resonated deeply with artists worldwide, inspiring numerous artistic responses. Street artists, painters, and illustrators recreated the photograph in murals, digital art, and installations, transforming it into a symbol of collective mourning and a call for action.

 

These artistic appropriations not only reinforced the emotional weight of the original image but also framed it within a broader socio-political context, highlighting issues of displacement and global responsibility.

In summarizing sub-sections 1.3 and 1.4, we can say that the examples we have chosen are not the only widely used and mediatized representations by traditional and new media or political actors. However, they clearly illustrate the ambivalence in the representation of refugees as media figures.

On the one hand, they can be portrayed as victims in need of empathy and protection, on the other hand, the migrants are depicted as threatening others, provoking fear and hostility (Chouliaraki and Stolic 2017). These representations often oscillate between the stereotypical extremes of the ‘speechless victim and evil-doing terrorist’(Chouliaraki and Stolic 2017).

Crucially, they are constructed by others – those in positions of power and authority – rather than by refugees themselves. As a result, they frequently fail to capture the complexity of refugee experiences and displacement trajectories, depriving those affected of their agency. Instead, others speak on their behalf, shaping narratives that may not align with the lived realities of refugeehood and displacement.

1.6 Review