The myth basically assumes that the subject matter is true and real and that cameras were made to capture real, unaltered life at any given moment: Generally speaking, no questions are asked about the “practice of looking” that is involved when we view photos.
As we all have read, hopefully at some point or another; photography was initially used for scientific and statistical reasons-- and some of that "authority" still echoes in our considerations and processes of our own visual culture. We hardly consider technique or why the subject matter was even chosen in the first place. I think this is because of how powerful imagery is for the human brain: It's what the brain processes first. Visual storytelling is, IMHO, the strongest form of communication: Most often times, it's instant, emotional and captivating.
Now, turning this information to my readers specifically-- I am prompted to ask these questions:
How have we used perception, visibility, imagery to resist political erasure and structured oversight?
How does understanding this help us to organize ourselves politically for the future?
Is there something substantial in being disruptive to the visual status quo?
What are the mediated effects of our viewing imagery real-time as opposed to a photograph?
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To "unpack" what I mean, consider the images used to support the cause that were released to the public by Sojourner Truth. The quote is defining the visual homonym of selling photos of herself in place of her formerly being sold.
Visual culture and storytelling are important because they prompt us to take action; to change behaviors; to connect; and most importantly-- they seek to convince.
