Verbalising the Visual: Translating Art and Design into Words

by Michael Clarke

Is every picture worth a thousand words? And what words should they be? Verbalising the Visual explores the ever-changing relationship between language, objects, and meanings, and considers how we translate the experience of visual culture into written and spoken words. World-renowned author and cultural commentator Michael Clarke looks at a range of language--formal and informal, academic and colloquial, global and local--and reveals how this language characterizes current art and design discourse. More than 300 pictures illustrate the intriguing examples. Ideal for visual arts students and helpful for anyone interested in writing and talking about art, including everyone in marketing, advertising, and communications, Verbalising the Visual is a refreshing, insightful look at words and pictures and the place where they intersect.

208 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Librarian Note: There are several authors in the GoodReads database with this name. This profile will contain more than one author. Those listed below have multiple books listed on GoodReads.

Michael Clarke (2 spaces): adaptations of ancient writings
Michael Clarke (3 spaces): GRs’ author of All Day, Every Day
Michael Clarke (4 spaces): non-fiction, past director of RUSI, Visiting Professor of Defence Studies King’s College London
Michael Clarke (5 spaces): cricketeer
Michael Clarke (6 spaces): GRs’ author with books on marketing and social media
Michael Clarke (7 spaces): late martial artist
Michael Clarke (8 spaces): non-fiction, specializes in China and the Far East
Michael Clarke (9 spaces): Director of the Scottish National Gallery
Michael Clarke (10 spaces): tween book series Pick Pock, Tick Tock
Michael Clarke (11 spaces): non-fiction, late sociology professor from Universities of Birmingham and of Liverpool
Michael Clarke (12 spaces): non-fiction, Irish professor of classics at National University of Ireland

Reviews

[Joanne McVey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been invaluable for my job. It is a useful resource when teaching art and design students and for me this is also helpful for my students who have English as an additional language.

[Laura Eydmann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Verbalising the Visual discusses words and the relationship between text and objects. I don't know why but for some reason I just couldn't get on with this book. I found it a bit dry, overlong, and generally struggled to read this. Unusual as I usually love reading up on this subject, perhaps I have not been in the mood for something this academic at the moment... I managed to read two other books in the meantime (non-fiction) so perhaps I just was not in the right mood for this.

Either way, I did not enjoy it a such as I hoped, parts were interesting, particularly the chapters on language and meaning, and informal language, but on the whole it has not been my favourite book of the year by a long shot. Perhaps I'll revisit again one day, and enjoy it more.

[Hank Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always fascinated about words and art and design; and art and design and words; and design and words and art... and the never ending curiosity of a juxtaposed spirit of visual to verbal and vice-versa and how we can explore and translate either at any moment to clarify our messaging systems. Language, object, and meaning are all explored and how these elements confirm various aspects of linguistic meaning and how they can be identified is at the heart of this fabulous and long overdue book. Every designer should read it. Every writer should read it.