The public in print: revisiting historical US political visuals in a digital age

Luo, Zhi

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121305 Copy

Description

Title

The public in print: revisiting historical US political visuals in a digital age

Author(s)

Luo, Zhi

Issue Date

2023-06-14

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Briggs, Molly

Committee Member(s)

• Mercer, Lisa
• Sibrian, Angelica

Department of Study

Art & Design

Discipline

Art and Design

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

M.F.A.

Degree Level

Thesis

Keyword(s)

• visual rhetoric
• visual historiography
• graphic design
• nationalism
• racism
• history of printing.

Abstract

Image-making and visual design have long been intertwined with political upheavals. Two forms of persuasion in political communication—propaganda, and expressions of dissent—have relied heavily on visual channels. This thesis puts theories of communication, visual rhetoric, psychology of image-making and graphic design in conversation with historical and contemporary events and argues that images and design elements function as visual arguments. Borrowing from the framework of linguistics, this paper treats images both holistically and syntactically. First, it analyzes iconic political visuals from an image-making and visual communication perspective; then it traces the symbols’ evolution in political discourse across time. In doing so, this thesis argues that examining print and analog media and print history remains an essential methodology for interrogating contemporary political visual culture.

Graduation Semester

2023-08

Type of Resource

Thesis

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/121305

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2023 Zhi Luo.

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