Visual Literacy

A Primer

A definition? Visual literacy is the ability to interpret, negotiate, and

make meaning from information presented in the form of an image. Visual literacy is based on the idea that pictures can be “read” and that meaning can be communicated through a process of reading.

The term “visual literacy” (VL) is credited to John Debes, who in 1969 offered a tentative definition of the concept: “Visual literacy refers to a group of vision competencies a human being can develop by seeing and at the same time having and integrating other sensory experiences.”

Why and How

We live in an increasingly visual culture. We are surrounded by images everywhere in our

lives. Studying visual imagery helps better understand the

complexities of their world. Visual Literacy is based on… Encoding (expressing their thoughts and ideas in

visual form) Decoding (translating and understanding the

meaning of visual imagery).

A lack of definition?

Because multiple disciplines such as education, art history and criticism, rhetoric, semiotics, philosophy, information design, and graphic design make use of the term visual literacy, arriving at a common definition of visual literacy has been contested since its first appearance in professional publications.

The Multimodal Perspective

Scholars stress the necessity of accepting the co-presence of linguistic literacies and visual literacies as interacting and interlacing modalities which complement one another in the meaning making process.

Some examples

Visual literacy is not limited to modern mass media and new technologies. Even though the name visual literacy itself as a label dates to the 1960s, the concept of reading signs and symbols is prehistoric.

Animal Drawings Signs and Symbols Brands and Logos Graphic Novel And Comics

Uses Example - An image can be used to show what an idea might

look like. The picture may be used to illustrate a concept that is being described within a text or strengthen a point of which the author is trying to persuade his or her audience.

Evidence - An image can be used to add new information. The picture may be used to represent data that is being described within a text or highlight one aspect of an argument of which the author is trying to persuade his or her audience.

Expression - An image can be used to express a feeling or attitude. The picture may be used to stylize information that is being described within a text or make an ironic or emotional comment on the point of which the author is trying to persuade his or her audience.

Structural Elements

Similarity and Difference

Structural Elements Foreground - the part of the picture that is

nearest to the viewer

Structural Elements Background - the scenery behind something

(usually whatever is in the foreground)

Structural Elements Symmetry - an exact correspondence of form on

two sides of a plane resulting in balance

Structural Elements Asymmetry - lack of balance or symmetry

Structural Elements Tone - the intensity of light and dark

Structural Elements Shape - the basic geometric shapes, such as

triangles, squares, and circles, that are apparent in a visual image's composition

Structural Elements Motion - the illusion of motion within a visual

image