WK 5 Reading

1.     Copy and paste a quote from each of the chapters that causes you to have a strong reaction (agreement, disagreement, confusion...) and explain your reaction.

Ch.3

“When we read the word dog, this is no specific dog we all think of.  Rather, it is the concept of “dogness” that each person interprets in slightly or drastically different ways.  One person may like dogs, while others are afraid of them.  The signs we use do not create stable or direct relationships between signifiers and signifieds.  Rather, people construct relationships between words and objects for themselves every time they transact with signs in their environment.  There is no universal, stable meaning for any sign, although some meanings become conventionalized and are more widely accepted than others” (Serafini, 2014, p. 33).

I included the whole paragraph so that I could reference myself back to the concepts, but the latter portion of the paragraph is the one I am focusing my response on.  I just think it is crazy how our minds are all so individual.  We hear a word and our brains do all sorts of visual imaging and multimodalities to identify what we perceive that word to mean to us.  I am more just commenting on how miraculous the human brain is and how much happens behind the scenes that we really have no clue about.  It seems easy to think of a word and visualize a representation of that word, but our brains do far more than that.  They may hear the word dog and be afraid because our subconscious remembers a time when we were bitten or pushed over (in infancy) by a dog that our conscious mind doesn’t recollect as a concrete memory.  This segment of the reading just got me off track a bit thinking about the human brain and how much the average person uses it and what parts we are aware are being used.  Makes me want to go to a lab and find out more about what my brain does during idle time when I think I am just daydreaming about vacations or cake, when I’m really doing a thousand and one other things.  This is just a bit of a rant in response to the first quote, but relevant to me nonetheless. 

         Ch.4

“Wikipedia has not only changed how we look up information, it has changed who has the authority to control which definitions and information are made available, forever blurring the line between informer and informed” (Serafini, 2014, p. 47).

I am confused by the use of Wikipedia.  Most academic professionals have strongly advised against using it as a reference, due to possible unreliable content because anyone can post information on Wikipedia.  I’m guessing this is where the quote references the blurring of the lines between the informer and the informed.  I think this means that amateurs can contribute to the overall understanding of words and concepts on Wikipedia, but this site’s reliability is still under question for me. 

         Ch. 5

  “As educators, we need to help students experience the qualities of works of art and other visual images and use these experiences to better understand the features and meaning potentials of multimodal ensembles” (Serafini, 2014, p. 55).

This chapter was my anthem!  Art teachers live and breathe design and visual composition elements.  Everything was exceptionally translated!  I chose to elaborate on the quote above.  If we help students understand the ideas and concepts that go into multimodal compositions, it will better prepare students for creating their own digital creations.  All visual and design elements are related and have specific intentions behind their inclusion in advertisements and web-page layouts.  Students know more than they think if you engage them in discussions of the what, where and why?!  Most of the time it is just bringing up the discussion to trigger their knowledge and experience.  After the discussion, then redirecting their objectives for the assignment into highlighting what they learned and seeing how they can apply that knowledge into their multimodal assignments successfully.  This chapter was amazing!  It is imperative for teachers to understand visual decisions made in multimedia ensembles.  It is also ideal for teachers to share this knowledge across curriculums for teachers to use and apply when making their lessons more contemporary and meaningful to students today.   This universal understanding would also help link material and make concepts from subject to subject more connected and relevant to students and how they can apply what they learn in the real world.  Too much we hear, “how is this going to help me in the future?” – perhaps linking our messages will help students understand the use of these skills and the relevance they have in the real world.  

2.     Find an image, symbol or motif and upload it to your blog.

3. Conduct a content analysis:  

•    What do you see?

I see rough rocks, foliage, trees, mountains, land, sky, clouds and water. 

•    What is the image about?

The image is depicting the rustic, untamed beauty and serenity of the WV Mountains.

•    Are there people in the image? What are they doing? How are they presented?

No people.  Question N/A

•    Can the image be looked at different ways? Explain how the image might be interpreted from two different socio-cultural perspectives. Which perspective is dominate? 

The image can be perceived from different times of year.  This could be from late fall or after the effects of winter leading to spring.  If a person weren’t familiar with the climate and temperature of WV, then they would have difficulty pinpointing the time of year. 

I think depending on your socio-cultural perspective, some could see freedom from the control of society and feel peace of solitude or excitement of adventure.  Others could feel threatened or afraid of the unknown, loss of connectivity of community and support.  I think the dominant viewpoint is one of beauty, freedom, peace and serenity, but that is coming from me (someone familiar with the untamed WV mountains and an adventurous spirit). 

•    How effective is the image as a visual message.

The image is very effective as a visual message.  It has a variety of possibilities of message, like I mentioned above, but any of those could be used effectively as a message for this image.  Naming a few: freedom, vastness, nature, beauty, serenity, adventure, fear and loneliness. 

4. Conduct a visual analysis: Use the Chapter on Elements of Art, Design and Visual composition to assist your visual analysis. 

•    How is the image composed? What is in the background, and what is in the foreground?

The image is composed in the rule of thirds.  The foreground contains large rocks, heavy brush, and variety in color and texture.  The middle ground is the mountainside leading off into the vast distance.  It further depicts brush, foliage, trees and rocks.  The background is comprised of sky full of loose, wispy clouds leading the viewers eye back along the mountain to the left down to the center and back up around through the formation and placement of rocks in the image.  A focal point of the composition is the round brown water puddle atop the larges rock in the foreground.  All of the elements combined create a strong visual image and provide a lot of variety and movement for the viewer. 

•    What are the most important visual elements in the image? How can you tell?

The most important visual elements in the image are the rock formations.  They hold the most visual weight in the image and provide texture variety, balance and movement for the viewer.  Dynamic colors help also.  You can tell because they are essentially front and center in the viewfinder and lead us off to explore the rest of the photograph. 

 

•    How is color used?

Color is used in its natural environment.  Color is heightened due to extreme light and shadows cast by the sunrise, which also brings out color we didn’t even know was there.  The primary colors depicted in the foreground are red, green and yellow.  In the background the colors are green, blue and bright yellow.  All these colors combined add to the dynamism of this landscape and assist in its magnificence. 

•    Can the image be looked at different ways?

The image, in my opinion, cannot be looked at differently.  But as we are all different people, our eyes will move around the composition differently.  I think any viewer would pick up on what I have in a critical analysis.  As addressed in a question above, the meaning of the image and the feelings evoked within the viewer can be different. 

•    What meanings are conveyed by design choices?

The photographer has chosen to make the land the primary source of content, as it occupies the most space of the visual plain.  The land and its colors and textures create the visual dynamism, paired with the vortex skyline leading our eye to the background mountain silhouettes.  The dark green pine tree on the right side of the landscape offers some visual weight balance and a contrasting texture from foreground to back.  All of these concepts are in front of a photographer’s mind as they are scoping out possible scenes within their viewfinders.  The snap of the shutter is when they’ve perfected their visual composition.  The artist is very deliberate in his message and the content of his photograph.  Leading to a very visually pleasing photograph with impeccable design elements.  Well-done Kevin! 

On a side note, the photographer is my husband.  I am very proud of his artistic vision.  If you have time, check out his website:  http://www.kevinfunkphoto.com/  

Have a great weekend everyone!

Resources

Funk, K. (2013, October 9). Dolly Sods. Bear Rocks Wilderness. Retrieved June 20, 2014, from http://www.kevinfunkphoto.com/galleries/landscapes/bear-rocks-dolly-sods-wilderness-west-virginia-D300_19870

Serafini, F. (2014). Introduction. Reading the visual: an introduction to teaching multimodal literacy (p. 33, p. 47, p. 55). New York: Teachers College Press.