He is in no way a monologist, and in every way a catalyst for others' thoughts. Mitchell has a rare quality of generosity, to thinkers, published and unpublished, who have worked on these topics. We might think of this whole and fascinating book as a dialogue between viewer and image, but a dialogue with a chorus around it. "What do pictures want?" also implies, for him, the other sense of want: "what are they lacking?" Implied is the response: they want us and pull us in-draw us in, "hail" us, as in Althusser's term. Before I go one step further, let me say that Mitchell's use of word play is more like the unpacking of concepts than anything superficially pun-like. I was swept up, in the middle of the current, by the discussion of the objet trouvé, how it finds you, how it is foundational, and then, related to that, the discussion of objecthood. Ungaretti's one-line wonder, "M'illumino d'immenso," comes to mind also, such is the range and depth of material Mitchell offers us. To use a phrase from the former postman and subsequent philosopher of science and literary critic Gaston Bachelard, this rich volume is of an "intimate immensity," (as quoted by Mitchell, 262) sufficient to engage anyone-that is, everyone-interested in visuality under any guise at all.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |