ITAP-9

Image and text

During this lecture we looked at the ways in which text can affect the image and how the viewer may perceive the image. For example take a look at this image by fine artist Magritte.

 now when we first look at the image the first thing we notice is the pipe, next our eyes are drawn to the text which reads “this is not a pipe” without the use of this caption the meaning behind the pipe would be a little unclear. Another thing I like about this piece is that the lettering that has been used blends in with the aesthetics of the painting I also like that the lettering is hand written as opposed to it being a simple block style typeface and I feel that this adds extra warmth to the painting and gives it a more personal touch.

Next I’d like to look at this piece by mixed media artist and graphic designer Barbara Kruger, the piece is called your body is a battle ground.

 Here she depicts a black and white photograph with its meaning being amplified by the use of red blocks filled with bold white text and straight away your eyes are drawn to the bold text. With this bold statement she causes the viewer to enquire and try to figure out the meaning of the photograph. Upon closer inspection the next thing that we notice is that one side is in black and white and the other is given a kind of negative effect, with this we see that she is playing with the idea of positive and negative good or bad. Another point to mention is that the woman is depicted staring right at you perhaps to involve the viewer more.   Much of Barbaras work is centered around feminist issues and this piece is no exception, this was created in support of the 1989 march on Washington to support women’s rights with the emphasis on abortion (the right to choose)and birth control rights. So the phrase your body is a battleground is made perfectly relevant to the piece because it refers to the fight for a woman’s right to make her own decisions in regards to the subject of abortion good or bad which is emphasized by one half of the face being black and white and the other being in negative.

So as you can see the text that is used and how it is presented can give an added meaning to a piece of communication which is an important thing to consider when coming up with your own forms of visual communication.

Finally I’d like to look at an image that was taken by a photographer called Gillian wearing.

 Gillian’s project involved finding passers-by and getting them to write what they thought and felt onto a piece of paper. From reading the text which says “I’m desperate” numerous thoughts rush to your head like “what is he desperate for” and “what does he mean by this?” etc.What I like about this is that it gets you to enquire and gives a different perspective on the person because if you were to look at the picture by itself without the text the meaning behind it and the persons thoughts would be obscured so I like the way the text gives meaning and a sense of purpose to the photo.