Ch 9 Synopsis

Chapter 9 of Practices of Looking investigates how science and looking are interconnected. Previous chapters have already concluded that looking is a very important aspect of culture and media, but its association with science is a little bit different. The chapter states, “Because scientific imagery often comes to us with confident authority behind it, in the form of images made by experts, we may assume these images are objective representations of knowledge, whether we view them through the popular media or through professional publications.” (p 347) Many people tend to believe that all science is based entirely on fact, which may or may not be true, making it a strong tool in convincing people to believe certain things.
The earliest reference the chapter makes to the connection of art and science is DaVinci’s Vitruvian Man (1487). This work that come to be a symbol of medicine and health shows how geometry can be used to depict ideal human proportions. The chapter also mentions how anatomy theaters came into existence in the late 16th Century. Here, people would gather to watch bodies being dissected. This practice led to another famous piece of art, “The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp” (1632) by Rembrandt van Rijn, which shows the members of the high class watching a member of the lowest class being cut open, creating a portrait of the social relations that existed. Meanwhile another portrait, “Portrait of Dr, Samuel D. Gross” (1875) by Thomas Eakins, shows “our simultaneous revulsion and fascination with the body” (p 353). Current exhibitions, such as the Body Worlds exhibit, show similar fascinations, as they put the hidden insides of the human body on display. For some reason, people are extremely interested in seeing what usually goes unseen. However, there are often moral conflicts that go along with this fascination. For example, some of the bodies of the Body Worlds exhibit may have victims of torture in China.
Photography is also a major part of the relationship between the science and visual worlds. In a positivist view, the camera is considered “as a useful tool for mechanically observing, measuring, and studying the real world in a manner that could check, balance, or correct the errors introduced by subjective human perception.” (p 355). Photographs are considered to be much more reliable than hand-rendered representations and have been used to record science visually since their inception.
With all of these forms of visually recording the appearance of the human body, it is almost impossible to avoid using them to classify people. Images of people have been used to classify people based on their race, mental development, and even the likelihood of being a criminal. However, these interpretations of photographs are more based on society’s perception of the given physical characteristics rather than hard evidence. Physiognomy is defined as “interpreting the outward appearance and configuration of the body, and the face in particular” (p 359). However, the text agrees that these practices did not produce facts about human life, but rather spread myths. More myths are created when images are altered. For example an anti-abortion campaign altered sonogram images to make it appear that the fetus was reacting to the thought of abortion.
The chapter finishes up with another interesting topic—how pharmaceutical companies use pictures to convey a message. What makes this interesting is that the advertisements rarely actually show the medicine, rather an image of someone enjoying life. This implies that by buying the medicine the consumer is also buying a happier lifestyle. Meanwhile, the terrible side effects are listed in small print, out of view.
Overall, this chapter outlines the relationship that science has with the visual world. From the earliest drawings to modern day virtual representations of it, people have always been fascinating by looking at the human body. Science adds another angle for us to experience culture from, in addition to creating its own culture.