University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

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

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
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 2023 Zhi Luo.

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