New Ways of Seeing a Masterpiece
The introduction to the first episode of Ways of Seeing shows a mop-topped John Berger cutting into Botticelli's 15th century painting "Venus and Mars." Over the sound of ripping canvas, he calmly explains what he plans to do during the course of his upcoming series: "... I want to question some of the assumptions usually made about the tradition of European painting." Through both word and gesture, he makes clear his intention to deconstruct images in order to analyze them.
Art, Benjamin, Cosmetics
This opening scene is a fine example of critic, writer and artist John Berger's modus operandi in Ways of Seeing. In straightforward terms, he calls into question the meaning and authority of images, whether Renaissance paintings or magazine ads for lipstick. His approach is inspired in part by German philosopher and writer Walter Benjamin's work. When Berger cuts the canvas copy of Botticelli's painting, he also slyly references Walter Benjamin's seminal essay “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.”
Men Dream of Women
In episode two, Berger tackles the hallowed art historical theme of the female nude, using it as a springboard to analyze female subjectivity and the concept of the gaze. A montage of still and moving images of women taken from art historical sources as well as the media accompanies his opening discussion. The camera cuts from a model looking in a mirror as she prepares for a photo shoot to an early Renaissance nude lost deep in her reflection. "Women constantly meet glances which act like mirrors," states Berger.
The History of Oil Painting
From the Renaissance up to, and through, the Modern era, the oil painting has functioned as the epitome of fine art. In episode three, Berger shows the close parallels between art and commerce that are exemplified in oil paintings. Indeed, paintings of precious objects are proprietary acts, but the images themselves then also take on value. In effect, the representation of wealth becomes another treasure to be placed alongside the very treasures it depicts.
Selling Glamour
Masterpiece paintings are all about commerce, whereas advertising, the subject of the final episode, is all about desire. More specifically, it's about the desire to be a certain kind of person who lives a certain kind of life. Berger contends that the semi-democratization of society, which has given individuals the hope of upward mobility, is what fuels the urge for a glamorous life. Ironically, the fact that most people can't really attain this is what creates envy, which is part of the advertising equation. In short, people hope to buy themselves a brighter, shinier life.
Ways of Thinking about Ways of Seeing
The final episode's critique of advertising feels a bit dated. And in fact recent reviews of Ways of Seeing the book occasionally complain that the ideas it presents are musty. While the film and the book may not fully apply to contemporary visual culture in all its fractured aspects, the philosophies and analyses still are useful tools for thinking critically about art and the media.
