Module Overview

This module introduces the student to the study of photography as a signifying practice and the methodologies used in visual studies. It gives students a foundation in understanding the centrality of the photographic image in contemporary culture and brings critical attention to the way the photographic image is produced, circulated, viewed and used across a number of institutional sites and situations, media and contexts. Students are encouraged to examine the photographic image as a communicative form, learning how to use semiological methods to understand the role of text, captions and context in the shaping of meaning. It integrates a theory-practice approach to provide students with a tool-kit for looking at images, learning a range of ways of seeing' in multiple contexts. Students are given a foundation in different interpretative methods that are explored through practical tasks, verbal and visual presentations, and writing. Students will develop and demonstrate critical thinking skills, actively engage with texts and audio-visual materials that examine visuality and specifically visual codes in established genres and emerging hybrid forms of photography.