In this visual sociology installment using Vine, we go from Melbourne to Canberra to Brisbane. Hold onto your seats, it’s your visual sociology for September, October and November 2015! We’ll see opulent art and enjoy the simplicity of kite-flying and the soothing power of water.
From the Hermitage exhibition, Catherine the Great was inspired by the archaeology of Rome. 6 September
A special visual sociology from the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), Sydney. We start with the Energies exhibition and then explore the nature of loneliness in modern life. We end with our return to Canberra’s art precinct.
Below is ‘Encounter with the Halo Field,’ by David Haines and Joyce Hinterding. These Australian artists live and work in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales. They blend experimental and traditional media to investigate energetic forces as well as the intersection of hallucination and the environment. 23 August 2015
Continue reading Visual Sociology of Parkes, Australian Capital Territory
In this next installment of visual sociology, we journey from January to February 2015 with many festivals in between. A celebration of Aboriginal resilience, public art of Summer Salt, the Lunar Festival, and Melbourne’s White Night Festival. We also revel in a little international art and the irreverent David Shrigley. Let’s begin with the sociology of play.
Jam Master Jay, Run-DMC. Street art in Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, Melbourne, Australia. 3 January 2015
Visual sociology of Melbourne’s art for August-November (filmed on my Vine!).
Street art in Melbourne. 31 August 2014
[Video: street art featuring original comic characters. Public takes pictures]
Your visual sociology for September-November takes us to the artiface of suburbian Melbourne.
The outer Western suburbs of Melbourne have seen a larger influx of working class Anglo-Australians and socially mobile people of migrant backgrounds. 17 September 2013
[Video: shopping centre in the background with artificial waterfall in foreground]
Continue reading Visual Sociology of Suburbia and the Spanish Festival
Here are my July-August vines, a visual sociology of art, with a little look at a beloved family member.
Victorian Artists Society, People Painting People, held in Melbourne. 20 July 2013
People who live in “Western” societies think red is the universal symbol for “stop” but no sign automatically translates across cultures.
The work I’ve done on intercultural communication in social policy unpacks symbols. For example, when peace keeping forces are stationed in another nation in a rural area, the first method through which they try to enforce law and order is through visual signs. They hand out pamphlets and put up posters that direct locals. They draw on their own cultural ideas which they presume will be shared in their new environment, including “stop” and the meaning of colours. Red has different connotations in different regions of the world. Translating meaning through visual cues is not straightforward.
[Video is a loop a pedestrian crossing button, with a sign showing red, amber and green symbols]
The Other Sociologist 