Spring 2020
VISST 2000 Introduction to Visual Studies
(AMST 2000/ ARTH 2000/ COML 2000)
A. Moisey
TR 11:40-12:55
Sections: 201 W 9:05-9:55, 202 W 10:10-11:00, 203 R 10:10 -11:00, 204 R 1:25 -2:15, 205 F 11:15 – 12:05, 206 F 12:20 – 1:10
Introduction to Visual Studies explores what vision is and how visualizations shape our behavior. It surveys vision science and philosophy, scientific illustration, aesthetics, art, marketing, modern design, identity, and surveillance. It relates how we built our visual world and how we can create a more sustainable and splendid one for all living creatures.
The first half - Science - covers sight and the struggle in science for objective images. We survey the psychology of depiction, the philosophy of perception, aesthetic science, data visualization, and discover why ours is just one of countless visible worlds. The second half - Spectacle - covers the rise of image culture. We learn how the train made our visual world modern, how the market economy is fueled by visual deceit, how we might try to see from others’ viewpoints, and how we will still be visually communicating with people tens of thousands of years from now.
