Essentialism, Subjectivism, Visual Studies. Concerning «non-Disciplinary» Ontology of Images

Resumo

Ontological questions concerning images seem to be more urgent then ever. If that is the case, then it may be so either because we are still unable to provide an answer to the question “what is an image” due to a metaphysical nature of the question, or because ontological reflection on images can only follow the changes that occur more rapidly and more substantially every day. How can we know what the image is if conditions of its production and consumption in our times follow completely different paths compared to various historical periods and their shifting image ontologies? However, there seems to exist a perennial trans-historical dispute over particular questions that pertain to people's ability to perceive and understand images. One of these questions is whether images are objects per se that should be approached using some of the existing universalist episte-mologies, or is it more pertinent to come to terms with images in socially, economically and sexually biased ways offered by various poststructuralist politics of identity. In this paper I will argue that contemporary theorizing on images should take into consideration not only dramatic changes occurred in imaging technologies and by the proliferation of subjec-tivities, but that it should also account for dramatic changes brought about by the theory itself – visual studies and Bildwissenschaft.   visual studies; Bildwissenschaft; essentialism; subjectivism; image ontology; nondiscursivity; appearing