Visual Culture - Coursework Example

?Visual Culture Visual culture is wisely considered to be a field of study which focuses on all aspects of culture which rely on visual images. Visual technology undeniably has a central importance in the contemporary culture. It plays a phenomenally important role in enhancing our visual capability and helps us in perceiving myriad cultural beliefs in addition to guiding us when managing behavior, values, and social relationships. Visual culture is based on a wide range of mediums which serve as core visual components and foster visual imagery in human minds like video games, internet, advertisements, comics, and media. These visual media play an essential role in deciding how we behave when dealing with others and performing various tasks. They also play a big role in deciding what kind of attitude we develop for our values and how we manage and develop social relationships in practical terms. While different visual media have been examined independently, “there is now a need to interpret the postmodern globalization of the visual as everyday life” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 3). The power of visuality is enormous in many aspects. It is an undeniable reality that visual culture specifically visual imagery in the form of different advertisements, comics, television plays, and internet has a lot to do with almost all actions we take in everyday life which is why contemporary culture is widely considered to be a visual culture. “Visual culture does not depend on pictures themselves but the modern tendency to picture or visualize existence” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 5). The ability to interpret visual information is so remarkable that it is claimed to serve as “the basis of industrial society and is becoming even more important in the information age” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 5). Visual imagery can play such an enormous role in our lives many times that it could hold us back from doing things or taking actions which we would if there is no fear of being imaged or seen by others. It is true when said that “it is the sense of being watched that constrains social action” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 45). Mirzoeff is trying to imply here that modern technology not only interacts with public life in multiple ways but also influences our daily decisions as already mentioned. In fact this interaction is so huge in terms of internet used and television daily watched etc. that one cannot remain oblivious to it. This essay is primarily based on contemplating the effects produced by visual images on managing behavior, values, and relationships. Throughout this essay I will discuss the role played by modern technology in our daily lives and explore multiple ways in which visual imagery prompts us and restricts us to perform any activity or in any social relation basically identifying the benefits offered by visual images. I will also make use of examples augmenting my argument to discuss how and why visual culture holds such fundamental importance in our lives presently. General consensus is that visual images form a rich and dense source of cultural information and encode the obvious relationship between culture and behavior management. The trend towards dominance of image continues to foment with the rise of visual reality and the Internet “combined with the global popularity of television, videotape, and film” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 9). A culture dominated by visual has often been criticized to be second-rate and this criticism has long history “for there always has been a hostility to visual culture in Western thought. All such criticism implies that a visually dominated culture must be impoverished or even schizophrenic” (Mirzoeff, 1999, pp. 9-10). Presence of visual images is so profound now thanks to the Internet facility available everywhere at quite cheap rates that many systems have started depending solely on different visual mediums. “Internet has come to function as a commodity-delivery system for vastly expanded media companies” (Stratton, cited in Nakamura, 2007, p. 3). It is true that some visual images only seem to work as denotation of different codes and once the meaning of the code is comprehended by a person, the visual image and its meaning loses its intrigue nature and remains of little or no interest. This could be applied to a traffic sign which is a code basically and a visual image also but as we come on terms with the meaning implied by the code in that traffic sign, we begin to get less intrigued by the image shown by that traffic sign. However, same cannot be held true for most of the visual images as the majority has a central importance in our lives. Once the images make a person enter into meaning-making process by way of engaging and interacting with him/her, they also simultaneously influence his/her mind to reach a certain decision which is why visual images form such an immense part of a culture as they can aid us in comprehending cultural values and complying with them. Also while watching television, “acquiring an understanding of the visual and textual conventions of a particular show must be regarded as part of the pleasure of watching” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 18). Jasmine (2012) in her writings about the effects of visual images suggests a particularly interesting medium for understanding the linkage between visual culture and social relationships. She implies that one needs to acquire sufficient knowledge and gather facts about the physiognomy of eyes and the psychology of visual perception in order to better understand the ABCs of how visual images become able to impact us and our social relations. The study of physiognomy of eyes and psychology of how we perceive images forms a big part of the visual culture. Modern technology not only interacts with the public but also affects us individually by interacting on an individual basis with our psychology. It is helpful to understand in context of psychology of visual perception that how our brain receives different signals from a visual image and then works to transform them into s single perception which then influences us in dealing with life and others. The lenses of our eyes catch the rays of light reflected from objects and images by focusing them on the retinas with the help of receptors specific for this purpose and which are also sensitive to rays reflected from images. Furthering the journey of transformation of signals into a single perception, the light imprinted on the retinas is then transferred to the visual cortex of the brain only after being converted into electrochemical signals. The job of the brain is then to comprehend all the different electrochemical signals and transform them into one single perception for us to remember whenever making a decision about any aspect of life and culture or society which we belong from or live in respectively. However an important thing worth mentioning here is that the way by which brain perceives signals coming from an image differs hugely which is why it is repeatedly suggested that interpretation of different images and artworks varies to such an extent that big distances can exist in the way two people, who are very close to each other, analyze and dissect visuals existing everywhere we go. Globally, culture is becoming more a product of what we watch than what we read (Dikovitskaya, 2005, p. 15). Visual technology ranges from artworks and television shows to magazines and the internet most specifically and visual culture is formed by comprehending, interpreting, and assessing this very technology which is why it is said that our culture today is formed on many levels by how big a role visual technology plays in our daily lives. It is reported by a Sun Sentinel article that people may “retain more information when they experience it in video and audio presentations” (Cavazos, 2011). The visualization of things through special mediums also forms a crucially important part of visual technology. Some things like distant galaxies or inner pathologies in a human body cannot be visualized by naked eye but with the aid of a telescope or an x-ray. The rays reflected by what we visualize through telescope or an x-ray image then go through the journey of being transformed into perceptions in the brain after which they influence us in making decisions about the nature of weather or human pathology. So acknowledging the importance of the visualization of things which cannot be detected by our eyes single-handedly is also important as many important decisions are made based on that. It is stressed that visual technology does not form a part of our lives alone but has actually become a person’s everyday life. “It is becoming more important in our society today to be able to absorb visual information and regurgitate it accurately. It is not only part of everyday life – it is everyday life” (Jasmine, 2012). Discussing how accurately visual images enable us in making certain decisions is also important and worth the effort as while it is claimed by many that our eyes and what we see through them cannot deceive us, some also suggest that visual aid can be just as damaging and fraught with weaknesses as hearsay or different news reports aired on radio or television. Though visual aid helps us in comprehending many things we see daily, it can also sabotage our decision making ability at times. This is because we mostly live our lives under constant video surveillance especially in the industrialized world. There are security cameras set up almost everywhere from public transport and shopping malls to restaurants and colleges. Whatever we do is recorded by the cameras which brings in question the validity of what we see and if that is of correct basis. For example, many times we view what mess is created by angry protesting groups on television which go beyond limits and harm the government properties or public’s possessions, but the footage captured of such disastrous events by the security cameras not always enable the authoritative people to make correct assumptions about what they visualize which is why despite evidence saved in the form of camera footages, no one exactly knows what happened or whom to prosecute and whom to leave. This implies that many times in life we make decisions and reach decisions which are not really related to the facts shown in by the visual images. A video surveillance camera can also show evidence as in the case of Jamie Bulger who got abducted when a child. Though it did nothing to assist the authorities in finding him, the act of abduction kept being replayed via imagery (Jasmine, 2012). So visual systems can play a significant role in crime detection and inspection (Addepalli, 2005) and how crimes are perceived thus, managing behavior of crime detecting authorities towards the crime issue. Visual images can play a very influential role in deciding our careers also though we might not be aware of it. Careers have been hugely influenced by one’s imagery and perception as much as by one’s credentials. People judge us many times by how we dress up and manage our body language. They catch the visual signals reflected from our dresses and body language, record them in their brains, and then process them to reach a certain conclusion about us in either a positive or negative way. The way a person dresses for an interview can play a huge role in determining is he/she will get the job he/she applied for or not. For example, no matter how good signals the interviewing panel catches from an applicant’s credentials, the jury members might still be put off by the fact that the applicant is wearing some offensive outfit which does not really go with the cultural values. So the visual images play a big role in career management. People have a tendency to build up an identity based on the information they accumulate from visualization of things or behaviors. This early judgment then advances onto the next level of relationship building, how well a person adjusts in a certain environment, how does he/she relates to others, and how does he/she perform at workplace or college. For example, if a person consistently pulls his/her eyebrows together while at workplace, he might distance himself from his/her co-workers who might think that this person is haughty enough to relate with anyone while that person him/herself might be totally unaware of the cause leading others to avoid him/her. Such an experience can also lead that person to become unmotivated and feel secluded. This is how visual images relate to building relationships and workplace performance, how bad signals can constrain a person’s social relationships, and how good visual imagery can help a person land a job or build reputation at work. Speaking of the importance of visual imagery, it is claimed that “communication through his form of imagery is just as important as through language or sound” (Jasmine, 2012). Though visual imagery can benefit many in reaching objectives and being socially active, it can also be devastating for some. For example, even in the present age discrimination prevails in the society and many amputees or black people are often discriminated against and are denied several jobs reserved for physically able and white people. This is also how many times decisions are made unrelated to solid facts and why visual aid is suggested by some to be as full of weaknesses as hearsay. This is because no matter how mentally able or smart an amputee may be, the employers will most certainly be mostly concerned with what they visualize and reach decisions based on that visualization. Riam Dean is one such prime example of discrimination who was born with her left arm missing and later as an adult while employed at Abercrombie & Fitch London branch, she was given a job role in the stock room so that she could be kept away from customers. She later left the position and sued the company. She claimed “she was diminished for not fitting the look policy” (BBC, 2009). This is also why they say that the world sees you first and then either decides or does not decide to know who you are. As in the case of amputees, people coming from different ethnic backgrounds can also be discriminated against based on their color which might constrain their social relations. Such ethnically diverse people in an environment made up of discrimination and prejudices are often denied equal work environments so that their contact with customers could be limited which in turn might forced them to limit their social action and this social behavior augments the claim that “it is the sense of being watched that constrains social action” (Mirzoeff, 1999, p. 45). An important thing to be considered here is that as much as visuals can form a frustrating hindrance in the way of disabled or black people in many parts of the world, they can also prove to be a blessing for deaf people who rely almost exclusively on hand actions, eyesight, and art to express themselves as being unable to do through words or sound. What people visualize from the artworks made by deaf people or from their hand actions helps them in perceiving different ideas about them on basis of which they make a certain judgment about them. Art can become a riveting necessity for many physically or mentally impaired people. Discussing Autism in her autobiography Dr. Grandin claims “I think in pictures. I translate both spoken and written words into full-colour movies. When somebody speaks to me, his words are instantly translated into pictures” (Grandin, 1996). So the visual images or signals can play a profoundly important role to enhance the lives of many people for the better in terms of communication. Visual images can also play a role in assisting the deaf people to comprehend the culture of the society they live in by as their visual sense is normally quite sharp to compensate for the impaired hearing sense and this means a deal for them as research proves that “eighty percent of all sensory information comes from sight” (Kranowitz, 2005, p. 156). Axel in contrast argues that “at least eighty-five percent of sensory input is visual and imagery can most certainly be manifested in a variety of nonvisual forms” (Axel, 2003, p. 125). Summing up, this much remains clear from the above discussion that it is very important for people to strive to develop deeper understanding and insight about visual images they see everyday as they can in turn help them in acknowledging their own identities and values. It is repeatedly suggested in literature on visual culture that the visual imagery in the present modern generation has a high potential of deeply affecting, developing, and managing social interactions and relationships in either positive or negative terms. We normally behave in lines of what we get to see in our everyday lives and then tend to manage our behavior by trying to perceive what we see. They can both hold us back and also encourage us to participate in different activities leading to different kinds of consequences. Most images hold in themselves meaning-making processes which influence the way we operate in society and manage ourselves and those relationships we develop. Though we do not really know we are being affected by visual images to such an extent that we start to make certain decisions in accordance with them as the meaning-making processes implied by images happen in abstract context. The importance of visual images in a classroom to augment the learning process cannot be overlooked in the same way it cannot be denied in a business organization which needs to release riveting and attractive product advertisements now and then to sustain customer loyalty. Maintaining body language and general overlook is also critically important as people rely heavily on their visual imaging ability to judge us on grounds of our facial expressions. Based on what they see in us, they give us an identity and then reach decisions about us in accordance with that ascribed identity. References: Addepalli, S 2005, EFFECTS OF MENTAL ROTATION, VISUAL AIDS AND TRAINING ON INSPECTION PERFORMANCE DURING AIRPORT BAGGAGE INSPECTION, viewed, 03 November, 2012, Axel, ES 2003, Art Beyond Sight: A Resource Guide to Art, Creativity, and Visual Impairment, NYC: American Foundation for the Blind. BBC 2009, Woman wins clothes store tribunal, BBC NEWS, viewed, 03 November, 2012, Cavazos, M 2011, THE IMPORTANCE OF VISUAL AIDS FOR MEMORY, LIVESTRONG, viewed, 03 November, 2012, Dikovitskaya, M 2005, Visual Culture: The Study of the Visual after the Cultural Turn, USA: MIT Press. Grandin, T 1996, Thinking in Pictures: and Other Reports from My Life with Autism, NYC: Vintage Books. Jasmine, LP 2012, Recent writings on Visual Imagery, viewed, 03 November, 2012, Kranowitz, CS 2005, The Out-of-sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder, USA: Penguin. Mirzoeff, N 1999, Introduction to Visual Culture, USA: Routledge. Nakamura, L 2007, Digitizing Race: Visual Cultures of the Internet, USA: U of Minnesota Press. Read More