Alejandra Lozano

Professor Amber Ward

ART 133-07
9/22/2015
Visual Culture
In Terry Barrets (2003) article Interpreting Visual Culture. Art Education the author is
writing about how visual and verbal communications, can influence our choices and thinking
about a product or a subject. In Barrets article we read about how different groups of people
interpret different visuals, and how the information in the images can sometimes alter our
choices. Advertisements can subconsciously make us buy a product and make us believe
something just from what we see in the ad; Barret (p.7) uses an example of a pasta sauce ad that
contains images of fresh produce and states the connotations of the ad as representing a
return from the market and implying two values: freshness of the products and the goodness of
home-cooking. Being aware of the details, as well as the big picture, can help students to notice
the way visuals affect us every day.
Interpreting Visuals can be a fun activity to do in a classroom, Learners of all ages can
successfully decipher the many messages circulating in the images and object of visual culture if
given opportunities and some strategies. says Barret (p.12.) On Tuesday, September 22, in
Professor Wards classroom, we had an activity in which the whole class looked at an image and
voiced their observations to the class; the exercise was successful in letting the whole class make
better observations as time progressed. The activity in Prof. Wards class came to a conclusion
and after listening to what the other students had to say and the aid of the Professor, we all had a

Barrett, T. (2003). Interpreting visual culture. Art Education, 56(2), 6-12.

better understanding of the visuals. The other students observations helped me see things I
wouldnt have, and get a better understanding of the big picture.

Barrett, T. (2003). Interpreting visual culture. Art Education, 56(2), 6-12.