Ways Of Seeing By John Berger

Way Of Seeing 

Ways of seeing by John Berger

This was a BBC TV series of four 30 minute documentaries made in 1972. In them Berger is seeking to challenge the way that people think about and view art

The topics covered were old masters, the nude; oil paintings and photography. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ways_of_Seeing)

In the first episode of the series John Berger looks at how original pieces of European art 1400 to 1900 are being reproduced and the negative impact it has on the value of art.

Berger focuses on the impact of the camera which he describes as a "mechanical eye” on art and the impact it has had on mass reproductions. 

In the show Berger states that the "process of seeing a painting is dependent on habit and convention” so the context in which we view art work is important.  

Berger explains that original paintings can only appear in one place in one time and are often unique to the place where they were made or designed for. Historically paintings were vital to the place where they were made and they were used to represent moments in history.   He gives the example of church art which were meant to sit in churches,   over alters or as part of the inlay in arches of the church itself.   Many people would have traveled to see a piece of religious art in its natural environment - a church or a cathedral -   now with so many reproductions the art work is now coming to us  to be put up on living rooms and offices and we no longer go to see it.

He feels reproductions have distorted both the image and the experience of art.  Taking the image outside of the church means it loses its meaning   what you are seeing is an image not the painting.

Berger's view is that original art is silent and cannot be manipulated. When paintings are reproduced they become what Berger calls "transmittable” The reproduction is no longer a constant.  It is an image which is affected by what comes before it or what comes after it.
Paintings  can be tampered with as part of the reproduction  process for example the media will use parts of the portrait e.g. the head of a painting in order to  draw attention to it  or they may change the focus  of a painting in order to sell something . They are being used for financial gain where as hundreds of years ago they were made to be gazed upon by art lovers.

Reproductions demean and devalue the original Berger argues that art is becoming increasingly easy to manipulate. it is not just reproductions by camera that are a problem but also replicas.  He gives the example of  the  "virgin of the rocks"  by Leonardo di Vinci which 2 galleries claim they  have the original .  He also argues against the cash value that is given to some paintings that mean that they have to be kept away from public view or be seen behind bullet proof barriers.   

When you stare at a painting Berger feels you should be able to note its stillness and silent presence which to a viewer gives them an idea of what the painting means to them.  

When a camera zooms on to an image the value of this image is taken into account not the painting, likewise when sound is added the viewer’s mind will get distracted so the painting loses its original meaning. The same happens to a painting on film or television these types of media get different views across to people watching. The camera will zoom onto a certain part of a painting and illustrates a different point taking away from there original meaning. An image can mean different things to different people depending on what they see or where they see it.

He takes us through a number of experiments in the programme including one where he asks a group of children to describe a painting which is reproduction of a Caravaggio painting.  He can demonstrate how children relate to what they see to their own experience. For example   the children pick up some confusion about the sexuality of the principal figure without knowing anything about the painter who was homosexual.  

Berger accepts that reproductions can help reconnect people with their own experience with art.  Ironically he also points out that his show is distorting the images of the art work he has presented as part of the documentary.

This is a documentary that you have to watch a couple of times in my opinion to really get the points that Berger is trying to make.  It is effective in getting you to think about how images can be manipulated and how important it is to see original art work.