Darian Murphy

Art 133-07
Ward
September 24,2014
Unit Paper 2
Summary
Barrett discusses developing connotative and denotative ideas based on an image or idea.
Barrett talks about how many people have a negative connotation of African Americans. He says
that when many people see someone who is black they automatically think they know who that
person is but in reality they have no idea. (Barrett,2003,p.3) He also talks about how we observe
a magazine cover; we take note of everything that we see. Once we have identified everything
present in the image we develop our own connotation of what the image means. They realized
that everything on the cover is coded and in need of interpretation. (Barrett,2003,p.5) We take
what we see and we dig deeper in hopes of finding the meaning behind the image.
Analysis
I agree with what Barrett is saying; as humans we see something and automatically
develop our own connotation and denotation. Unfortunately some of those connotations are
negative and they end up influencing the connotation of someone else. We should develop our
own connotation and denotation based on the individual person or idea, and not based off of what
others think. When developing your connotation you should keep it your own and it shouldnt
matter what the people before you think.
References
Barrett, T. (2003). Interpreting visual culture. Art Education, 56(2), 6-12.