THE SELF-ISOLATION RESIDENCY 13TH AUGUST 2020: DAY 137

'The Constant Library',  Volume V: "Ways of seeing.", John Berger.'

'The Constant Library',  Volume V: "Ways of seeing.", John Berger.'

"The idea for 'The Constant Library' follows on from a recent conversation considering which books had, and continue to have, the greatest affect my life in a variety of different ways. These are the books I can't live without and whenever possible I have a copy of with me wherever I travel in the world.; my 'Constant Library."

As a fundamental guide understanding art in the contemporary state, and I use that phrase deliberately as opposed to contemporary art, the is possibly no better place to start that with John Berger's 'Ways of Seeing'. I  have in the past posted about the 1970's TV series on which the book is based; and in fairness the series is probably better than the book. The book however, being a slim paperback, is in some ways more portable that the TV series, although with 'Youtube' on smart phones now perhaps that is not true anymore. For the best experience I would recommend watching series and reading the book at the same time.

Berger's approach is an old one but put forward in a new way; he enables even the layman to begin to understand the complexities of the painted image in opposition to photography or film by defining the 'uniqueness' of the art image as opposed to the mechanically reproduced.