The Visual Cultural Reader Book

From oil paintings to the internet, visual culture is concerned with visual events in which information, meaning or pleasure is sought by the seeing subject. The Visual Culture Reader has arisen out of the recognition of the wealth of visual experience in contemporary culture and the need to analyse these experiences. The diverse essays collected here represent a comprehensive exploration of the emerging interdisciplinary field of visual culture, and examine why modern and postmodern culture place such a premium on rendering experience in visual form. Covering a wealth of different visual forms including photography, painting, sculpture, advertising, virtual reality and other electronic imaging systems, the essays are grouped into sections addressing specific themes, each with an introduction by the editor. The opening section traces the pioneering work in visual culture over the last 15 years. Other sections deal with visual culture in relation to everyday life--its intersection with commercial culture, museum displays, technology, video and war; the development of virtual reality and its effect on the relationship between the human body and space; the representation of race in colonial and postcolonial culture; and the reevaluation of the gaze in relation to gender and sexuality. With essays from some of the most important thinkers of our time, it is destined to be one of the most influential collections for decades to come. Contributors: Malek Alloula, Oriana Baddeley, Ann Balsamo, Roland Barthes, Geoffrey Batchen, Suzanne Preston Blier, Susan Bordo, Sandra Buckley, Judith Butler, Anthea Callen, Nestor Garcia Canclini, Lisa Cartwright, Michel de Certeau, James Clifford, Jonathan Crary, Rene Descartes, Carol Duncan, Richard Dyer, John Fiske, Michel Foucault, Anne Firedberg, Coco Fusco, Tamar Garb, Paul Gilroy, Donna Haraway, bell hooks, Martin Jay, Reina Lewis, Anne McClintock, Marshall McLuhan, Timothy Mitchell, Lynda Nead, Adrian Piper, Griselda Pollock, Mary-Louise Pratt, Ann Reynolds, Andrew Ross, Ella Shohat, Robert Stam, Marita Sturken, Paul Virilio, Thomas Waugh.Read More