The Visual Sense: A Cultural Reader

Vision is more than looking or seeing. It is integral to all human action. Visual Sense presents a series of readings which offer a range of alternatives to conventional psychological and social scientific approaches to the study of the ocular. The book highlights the multitude of ways in which vision is linked to the other senses by virtue of being embedded in complex cultural processes.

Visual Sense introduces students to the analysis of a wide range of ways of experiencing sight across time and across cultures: from Renaissance Italy, Aztec Mexico and early Christian Europe, to Tibet, West Africa, Aboriginal Australia and South America, amongst others. It is arranged around broad themes of visual experience, ranging from navigating the sacred and ordering knowledge about the world to thinking creatively, socially and beyond vision into cyberspace and daydream. This unique approach allows cross-cultural and thematic connections to be made. A Guide to Further Reading allows students to expand their learning independently, and section introductions place the readings in context.

Visual Sense expands the field of visual studies and explores the place of vision in the sensory world.

Elizabeth Edwards is Professor and Senior Research Fellow, University of the Arts London.Kaushik Bhaumik is Vice President of Osian's - Connoisseurs of Art, a leading cultural institution dedicated to building an infrastructure for the arts in India.