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How to See the World
How to See the World: An Introduction to Images, from Self-Portraits to Selfies, Maps to Movies, and More | Nicholas Mirzoeff
3 posts | 1 read | 1 reading
Every two minutes, Americans alone take more photographs than were printed in the entire nineteenth century; every minute, people from around the world upload over 300 hours of video to YouTube; and in 2014, we took over one trillion photographs. From the funny memes that we send to our friends to the disturbing photographs we see in the news, we are consuming and producing images in quantities and ways that could never have been anticipated. In the process, we are producing a new worldview powered by changing demographicsone where the majority of people are young, urban, and globally connected. In How to See the World, visual culture expert Nicholas Mirzoeff offers a sweeping look at historys most famous imagesfrom Velzquezs Las Meninas to the iconic Blue Marbleto contextualize and make sense of todays visual world. Drawing on art history, sociology, semiotics, and everyday experience, he teaches us how to close read everything from astronaut selfies to Impressionist self-portraits, from Hitchcock films to videos taken by drones. Mirzoeff takes us on a journey through visual revolutions in the arts and sciences, from new mapping techniques in the seventeenth century to new painting styles in the eighteenth and the creation of film, photography, and x-rays in the nineteenth century. In todays networked world, mobile technology and social media enable us to exercise visual activismthe practice of producing and circulating images to drive political and social change. Whether we are looking at pictures showing the effects of climate change on natural and urban landscapes or an fMRI scan demonstrating neurological addiction, Mirzoeff helps us to find meaning in what we see. A powerful and accessible introduction to this new visual culture, How to See the World reveals how images shape our lives, how we can harness their power for good, and why they matter to us all.
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anushareflects
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A really thought-provoking read on visual culture and visual activism. Mirzoeff looks at the selfie, neuroscience, war, film, cities, etc in his effort to bring together a simple yet insightful work on the various ways we can think about the act of “seeing”.

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Emilymdxn
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My boyfriend definitely knows the way to my heart 😍😍 a guy who tells you to choose anything in the national gallery bookshop is definitely a keeper lol, I decided not to take the piss by choosing a big expensive art book tho. Maybe next time...

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Emilymdxn
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All the displays at the Oxford literary festival are so gorgeous, they aren‘t good for my wallet!

Jess7 Nice! Mint is my favorite color too! 7y
Emilymdxn @Jess7 Mint buddies 💙 I nearly bought so many things but they‘re mostly in the library at my workplace so I should be strong 7y
Mdargusch Looks amazing! 7y
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Emilymdxn @Mdargusch ikr!! I love the designs on penguin books 7y
RaimeyGallant No kidding! 7y
tpixie Great display!! 7y
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