2. part 1 definitions m1-4
Definitions
What is “visual culture”? How is it different from
art? From craft? From decoration? From other
kinds of artifacts?
What is art? How have different cultures defined it
differently? What is its relationship with rituals
and ceremonies?
What has art become in the modern world? Where
do you find it? Who looks at it? What uses does it
serve?
3. part 2 skills
what is formal analysis? what are some of the
key formal qualities to look out for in two and
three-dimensional visual works
why is it important to observe images in close
detail?
4. part 2 skills
what is semiotic analysis?
what is a signifier? signified?
how do signifiers and signifieds work
together to create possible meanings for
visual forms?
how do I choose which signifieds are most
likely for a given work of art?
5. part 2 skills
what is contextual analysis?
how does the reading of the work change if
the context is thought to be historical?
military/political history
social/cultural history
history of everyday life
labor history
history of images, such as painting, or
photography
6. part 2 skills
what is contextual analysis?
how might the reading of a work change if
the context is considered to be:
the society’s attitudes toward gender, race, class,
ethnicity, or disability?
7. part 2 skills
How do these various approaches work
together (or at times, against each other), to
produce an interpretation?
What is an interpretation?
What makes something a good
interpretation, rather than a mediocre or
lousy one?
8. part 3 domains
photography
media and technology
material culture
design
architecture
urban planning
9. part 3 domains
What unique qualities are possessed by each
domain that differentiates it from other
domains present on the list?
With what specific problems or challenges
does this domain deal?
What are some of the tensions experienced
within this domain, and what creative
solutions have been proposed to address
those tensions?
