The first of many lectures Visual Culture: Debates

25/01/2014

Blog entry 12:

The first of many lectures Visual Culture: Debates 

This blog outlines what was considered and discussed in the first Visual Culture: Debates lecture and how this has helped me personally with my practice.

Introduction to the module:

Tutor Ian Neal PHD

Ian began the module by talking about himself and his experiences, how he has worked his way up to the position he is now. I feel that this was interesting because I may be looking to study a PHD and tutor similarly to how Ian has worked in the past.

What is Masters study and how does it differ from a Ba?

• At a more sophisticated level
• More professional and in depth
• Potentially more implication on the future and areas of work
• More independent learning
• More academic knowledge of the practice you are studying
• Harder/ higher level of work
• Looks better on CV
• More personal to each learner
• Theory based and philosophical
• All modules are directly linked
• More freedom to choose how you work
• Expreimentation
• More CRITICAL

Key word: Praxis - the link between theory and practice

Considering the text Seven Principles of Visual by Paul Dumcum in class:

We were put into groups and each group was given one of the seven principles to discuss.

Representation:

• Representation when looked at in depth can allow a viewer to look to deep and suggest that things are being represented or purposely not represented, which the artist had not intended
• Overthinking on the viewers part to fully pick apart an image using representation as a guideline
• If an artist or practitioner was to attempt to represent everything, would this tae away their artistic licence as they are trying to please everyone
• The practitioner's intention - what do they want to represent? - what do others derive from their work
• What has been done purposefully and what is merely an overthought?
• Has a practitioner purposely or obviously chosen not to represent something - obvious lack of
• Practitioners may use representation to create hidden or less obvious meaning, for example Picasso used colour in his work to represent feeling, but not everyone would grasp that meaning
• Is hidden representation an afterthought? Due to what they are directly representing adhering to a wider audience?
• Only a few people out of the whole audience in many cases are going to notice less obvious or hidden representation - does this make it elitist?
• Representation is linked to the principle power - an artist has power to choose what to represent or what not to and the viewer has the power to interpret what has or has not been represented.

For the next session we have been asked to read the text The Ideology of the Visual by Glyn Davis and certain groups have been asked to volunteer to give brief presentations on 3 different subjects. The subject I shall be presenting as part of a group is Marxism. These points will be reseached further in blog entries to come.