Visual Literacy can be applied and understood in several different ways and is presently gaining academic legitimacy in terms of “reading” works of art.  My usage of the concept is tied to the belief that art objects carry meaning, which is embedded in the object itself and is transferred from the object to the viewer in a purely visual form. The meaning, to be understood, must be interpreted in order to be deciphered by the viewer. This activity does not require the necessity of text or words. Visual Literacy is inseparable from familiarity with the idioms, codes, symbols and conventions of a visual language, which can and does change from culture to culture. In other words, if a viewer is to genuinely appreciate a work of art and see intelligently, he/she must have knowledge and experience of the visual language used, in order to “read” the layers of meaning correctly and not misinterpret the work. However, certainly within Western art history, some layers of meaning are not fully revealed or understood until a passage of time has elapsed from when the work was originally produced. More >>>

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