book:::visual communication - images with messages

by paul martin lester
thomson wadsworth, 2006.
belmont, CA.

"because the retina is the only part of the human body where brain cells are exposed to the outside world, vision (unlike hearing, smelling, tasting or feeling) has much to do with how you feel about what you see." p.414

"more often than not, images that are remembered are the ones that combine aesthetically pleasing elements with content that matters. (combining both beauty and meaning is difficult). because emotional and intellectual attributes ate culturally bound, the two seldom agree. abstract art is a clear example of visual works that depend on the mental state of the viewer for their appreciation."p 414

As children we learn the alphabet. however, letters are just like a drawing for us. with time, letters relate to an object "a" for apple. later, letters are put together to form words that we can read. "we are taught that although we can gain meaning for each, reading words is valued more than reading pictures. we were taught that pictures play a subservient role to words." in school we have just one art class. in all other classes "we learn to read stories, but we're never taught to read images." p. 415

THE POWER OF IMAGES OVER WORDS. (think about it)
- do we have more ads in magazines now?
- do we have more illustrations in manuals?
- do we have more isotypes around the city?
- do we have more visual artists than writers?
- do we have more

soup operas in the radio became television shows.
hearing the voice and sounds are not enough. we need to see it.

videoclips
just listening to the music is not enough. the spoken narrative is not enough. we need a visual one to emphasize.

youtube
popular because it's a visual resource.

audioconferences x videoconferences
talking on the phone is not enough, we need to see the person we're talking to.

skype, msn, yahoo messenger, ichat
from just text to text and voice> from just text and voice to text, voice and image.

what about movie posters?
before (less technology), more illustrative and abstract.
today, much more appealing visually.

books/newspaper
just type;
type + illustration;
type + illustration + photo;
we want an image to illustrate what we're reading.

tv news
iconography (when talking about economy, sports, politics)
the sound may be down but we know what the ancor is talking about because of the iconography showing behind him.

"for many, understanding of the world is being accomplished, not by reading words but by reading images." p. 415

is society becoming more visual? does it have to do with globalization? - a world without barriers (at least the western) - no letters put together, but images and symbols to convey a message. brands are expanding globaly. they are using one ad to reach so many different audiences (yuri's Japanese magazine with the same ads found in cosmopolitan magazine. i was kind of shocked when i turned the page and saw a white man and white woman in that magazine).

"there are strong indicaions that the status of images is improving. (...) philosopher hanno hardt warns that television is replacing words in print as the impoirtant factor in social communication. shortly, predicts hardt, words will be reserved only for bureaucratic transactions by means of business forms and in books that only a few individuals will read. reading is losing to watching because viewing requires less mental processing." p. 415

"rebellious youth clingto visual symbols because words are associated with old ways of communications and old ways of establishing social order. words are repressive, but pictures are fascinating, are easily understood within a particular culture and can be used for propaganda purposes. one of the acts of the Russian government eas to transform churches into motion pictures theaters in order to show propaganda films. all leaders understand that to control a countrym they must also control the pictures. leaders if the taliban government in afghanistan, for example, did not allow their citizens to watch any television programs." p. 415

Educational psychologist Jerome Bruner of New York cites studies showing that:
People remember:
- 10% of what they hear;
- 30% of what they read;
- 80% of what they see and do." p.417

When we here a major news events (attack of the twin towers, the tsunami, etc), we have to find a tv set because we need to see (pictures). p 417

"Knowing how and why sensations are produced increases your repertoire of observations. And the more observations you collect, the more you learn about the world, people and yourself.
The more you know, the more you hear.
The more you know, the more you smell.
The more you know, the more you taste.
The more you know, the more you feel.
The more you know, the more you see.
The more you know, the more you are you."
p.419

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