What Pictures Do

Description

Professosr Ludger Schwarte (Professor of Philosophy at the Arts Academy Düsseldorf (Kunsthochschule Düsseldorf)).

 

His monographs include Philosophie der Architektur and Pikturale Evidenzen on the capacity of images to tell the truth.

Abstract

In my talk, I propose to analyse a particular performative potential of pictures. It is often taken for granted that pictures are material, exchangeable and marked surfaces which carry out and display some visual representation. Yet, when the existence or singular design of a picture becomes decisive, it becomes clear that pictures are to be distinguished from visual symbols (like writing) on the one hand, and display media (shop windows, show cases, monitors) on the other. Because of their design qualities, pictures offer affordances, functions and modes of effects which cannot be reduced to what they show. It can even be said that in some cases, they can act as witnesses, and not only as testimony, index or as visual evidence (like finger prints), insofar as they can attest against their authors.

 

 

Open to all. No registration required.
Part of the Cambridge Screen Media Group series.