A Contrastive Study Between Arnheim’s Visual Perception And Visual Cultural Theories

As visual culture has become one of the most influential culture aspects of the contemporary age, this thesis intends to research on Arnheim’s theories of art visual perception and visual culture studies which sorts out ways and means through aesthetic theories paradigm shifts under the contemporary historical background and culture transformation. This thesis includes three parts:Taking the viewing behavior as a comparative item, chapter one focuses on the differences in viewing theories between Arnheim’s art visual perception theories and visual cultural studies. It detailed discussed the different stances of art perception between the two theories which is done with the findlings that they have different viewing and viewing behavior, such as Arnheim’s viewing theories is based on Psychology, which explains the viewing behavior from the occurrence of visual selection mechanism, whereas visual culture is based on sociology, which analyzes the viewing behavior in the genealogy way from the vision of social situations.Chapter 2 discusses the different ideas of the two theories on art images. Compared to art image’s virtuality in visual culture, Arnheim paid more attention on its reality. In the process of art image creation, Arnheim laid emphasis on the creation of images, whereas visual culture emphasized the replication of simulacra. Concerning the expression form of art images, Arnheim put an emphasis on the visual perception dynamics deposited in its inner structures, but visual culture focused on its external impact.Chapter 3 analyses the generation of meaning of art works. Arnheim considers the generation way of art works’ meaning from its inner expression, while visual culture explains the meaning in the way of cultural representation. Arnheim paid more attention on the natural relation between media and the meaning of art works, and visual culture focuses on the media’s ideology nature when interpreting the meaning of art works. At last the thesis discusses the different sources of meaning of art works.Basing on the comparison and analysis between Arnheim and visual culture within the 3 chapters, this thesis tells the researching differences between aesthetic paradigm and culture paradigm of visual art, trying to restore the abundance meaning of visual art.