Submitted by Foto File on Mon, 08/17/2009 - 18:10
Aesthetically, just what is 'imagery', anyway? It is, in fact, a very simple idea that is somewhat difficult to explain. In it's most basic terms, it is the act of creating images, of course, as through drawing or painting or photography, etc. Images can be direct representations of people, places , and things of course, but they can also be symbols that evoke a particular thing, such as an emotion or feeling, or a memory, or a quality. Such an image can represent a 'picture' of that thing whether or not it 'looks' exactly like that thing or not. (And what does an emotion look like, anyway?)
It may be best to break the 'image' into two categories: Perceptual and Conceptual. Perceptual images are those images that actually exist or have existed and can be described by our memories of seeing. Conceptual images are more like symbols (shapes or forms) that represent something in the artist's imagination, rather than what the artist actually saw. Conceptual imagery is derived from emotion, fantasy, or invention.
One might be led to conclude that photography can only be perceptual by those definitions, but one would be taking a path of futility in that instance, for from the very beginning of the camera's invention, artists have been using it not only to record reality but also to explore conceptual imagery as well.