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i need help with writing a post on René Magritte, The Treason of Images, Ceci n’est pas une pipe, 1929. Oil on canvas, 21-½ x 28-½ in. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. © 2015 BI, ADAGP, Paris/Scala, Florence. © 2015 C. Herscovici/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Given the title of Magritte’s painting, if the image of a pipe were accompanied simply by the word “pipe,” it would be tantamount to an act of treachery. Our visual culture is full of images that work with this fundamental deception: a representation suggests qualities that the thing itself may not possess. Consider, for instance, the logo of the McDonald’s restaurant chain, the so-called “Golden Arches.” What might the company mean to communicate with this logo? Does it influence your ideas about the food? Can you think of other images in our visual culture the meaning of which we too easily accept without examining? A good place to look might be the apps on your phone.
