Lately I’ve been thinking about the differences between visual language and spoken (or written) language. When ideas are transmitted veyrbally or in written form, one must process them sequentially. In painting and sketching, all the ideas (in the form of visual elements) are presented to the viewer at once.
In the experiment below, I broke up the picture space with heavy lines. Each section can be interpreted as a different slice of time. The elements in this sketch are the directed lines, the discontinuity of the lines between sections, the content of the different spaces (young trees/old trees; sunrise/sunset).
This is a way to introduce the element of time into a visual language.
Pen and Ink Series #35
10×7″ 80# Smooth Surface
© 2025 Jack Davis
Looks like a map. (K)
A time map! Thanks, Kerfe!
Yes! I like that idea.
;>)
I don’t get it, the drawing. Visual information does give you all the info at once, but maybe how it is conveyed matters a lot, like us understanding what we are at least familiar with? It makes me think of knitting charts, fabulous for whom knows how to interpret them, useless for those who don’t have the interpretation code
I agree. It’s complicated. The artist has his/her ideas and iconography, the viewers have their’s. The message received may not be the message sent. More familiarity with the artist’s work could make interpretation easier. Thanks for your comment, Jessica!