Message-Id: <mailto:199505120140.UAA27095@library.wustl.edu> Date: Thu, 11 May 1995 20:38:30 -0500 From: mailto:MARTINA3558@UNI.EDU> Subject: Re: Does one really need an AR-15 Rifle image? To: Multiple recipients of list IMAGELIB
My first inclination was to "extinguish' this by ignoring it; however, IMAGES are, in fact pertinant, and my own area of specialization and research so:What is being termed a PC reaction might for some people be a very real and strong negative affective reaction to a powerful combination of Images/symbols.
A rifle does have certain connotations in about any culture.
A flag has connotations as well.
The combination of the two MEANS something that may be different from the meaning that the designer intended; still, he, and we, should be aware of the reality of visual communication, and what our visual images convey to others, in both our own and others' circle of viewers. I have argued elsewhere that images on the net may have ambiguous and unintended meanings, give the diverse, international, and multicultural audiences they reach.
--I think the charge of PC is harmful here because it polarizes the audience and distracts from the real problem.
-- Anna Martin, art educator mailto:martina3558@uni.edu