image reading

Art critic John Berger's video viewing and analysis of classic anthologies that have been out of print for many years are newly reproduced
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Includes the preface to the new edition by translator Liu Huiyuan
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In this collection of essays, John Berger, a master of art criticism, explores how humans, in the role of observers, reveal new levels of meaning in what we see: how by gazing at the animals in the zoo, we remind ourselves not to forget the difference between humans and animals. the natural original relationship lost due to modernization? Will the battlefield scenes be made more terrifying through visual effects, causing secondary trauma? How does the media use photographic effects to render concepts? How does silence inspire and nurture artists' creations? Through these core questions derived from "seeing", Berg provides readers with a rationale for reading images from various angles.

With his keen observation and unique ability to interpret images, Berg proposed the social and cultural thinking behind images using painting and photography as media. The book discusses the viewing angles of animals and humans, the functional practice of photography in modern society, and the motivations and backgrounds of important artists throughout the ages. The arguments are incisive and extraordinary.

This great writer who writes about human affairs always uses a pen that is timeless and full of the sense of the times to skillfully analyze the world, discuss images wonderfully, cut to the core but convey true feelings, intertwining hardness and softness, weaving stories that we have never imagined. passing field of view. Just like the "wilderness" described in the last chapter of this book, it is full of vitality and boundless. That is John Berger's unremitting gaze on the unity of heaven and earth.