Wellness Calendar: Saturday 19 July

Ways of seeing
How we view art could be a clue to how we view the world in general. John Berger, an art critic who wrote Ways of Seeing in 1972, encourages the reader to take a step back from works of art and find ways to expand our capacity to see things differently. He believed that a lot of our seeing is based on habits and conventions, and that much of the art we consume limits us in some way by leading our eyes into fixed paths of perception. Art critics tell us what is great art and what is not. He believed that classic nude paintings were created for the male gaze and that advertising promises us the good life while ultimately encouraging us to spend money on things we don’t need.
If we can become aware of how others are manipulating our perception of the world, might we be able to reclaim our eyes for ourselves? But more importantly, what do you make of Berger’s ideas and what questions might they raise for you?
Berger also made another point about words. He argued that in terms of our bodily development, emotions came before words, as did thinking, moving, seeing, hearing and indeed all our senses. So how come we use words to describe what we’re feeling, thinking, seeing and hearing, etc.? Could art be a better way of communicating than words?