The Treasury of Images

A series of flashcards covering key vocabulary terms and definitions from the lecture on the Treasury of Images.

Representation

The depiction or presentation of something through visual or symbolic means.

Semiotics

The study of signs and how meaning is created and communicated through various forms.

Signifier

The physical form of a sign, such as an image or a word.

Signified

The concept or idea that is represented by a sign.

Icon

A type of sign that resembles the object it represents, such as photographs or realistic paintings.

Index

A sign that has a direct physical connection to the object, such as smoke indicating fire.

Symbol

A sign that has an arbitrary or conventional meaning, like words or logos.

Punctum

An emotionally striking detail in a photograph that 'pierces' the viewer.

Studium

The general or cultural meaning of an image.

Denotation

The literal, surface meaning of an image.

Connotation

The deeper, culturally and socially informed meanings beyond the literal.

Positivism

A 19th-century movement emphasizing truth through sensory observation.

Interpellation

The process by which ideological systems 'hail' individuals into specific roles.

Hegemony

The dominant or 'invisible' ideology of a cultural group, perceived as common sense.

Intervisuality

The interconnectedness of images and how they refer to or draw meanings from each other.

Cultural Jamming

The practice of subverting mainstream messages through parody or critique.

Bricolage

A French term for making do with available materials in new and innovative ways.

Counter-Hegemony

Efforts to challenge and oppose the dominant ideology.

The Gaze

A power dynamic between the observer and the observed, often reflecting social and cultural hierarchies.

Panopticism

A disciplinary mechanism where individuals regulate their behavior because they feel watched.

Male Gaze

A concept where media and art frame women as objects of male pleasure.

Clinical Gaze

The role of medical observation in categorizing and controlling individuals.

Orientalism

Representation of non-Western cultures as exotic or barbaric by Western art and media.

Linear Perspective

A mathematical system for representing space and depth in art.

Cubism

An artistic movement rejecting linear perspective to present multiple viewpoints.

Abstract Expressionism

Art that focuses on movement and emotion, often removing traditional perspectives.