A brief introduction to practicing semiotic analysis in visual arts and culture.

1. MODULE 6
SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS
Art 100
Understanding Visual Culture

2. M6 overview
 What is semiotic analysis and how do I do it?
 Practicing semiotic analysis
 Together as a group
 Then in small groups

3. Ferdinand de Saussure
FERDINAND DE SAUSSURE
Born Geneva, Switzerland, 1857
Trained in ancient and modern languages at the University of Geneva and later, the University of
Leipzig.
Taught in Paris and Geneva.
Died in 1913.

4. Course in General Linguistics
Taught at University of Geneva, during
academic years 1906-7, 1908-9, 1910-
11.
First published 1916 by a team of
students who carefully collated their
lecture notes.

5. Older conception

6. …gives way to the new.

7. sign
 Sign=signifier + signified
 Signifier (discrete visual element)
 Signified (meaning)

8. Key implications of this
shift
 1. The sign is arbitrary.
 There is no necessary link between a particular set
of sounds and the concept it designates.
 The sound and concept are united within the
confines of a particular language and culture.
 In English the rooster says “cock-a-doodle-do”; in
French “cocorico”; in German “kikiriki.”

9. Key implications of this
shift
 2. The sign creates meaning differentially, in
relation to other signs.
 Dog is not cat, not chipmunk, not chocolate chip
cookie.
 Meaning is context-dependent.
 “You dog!” might sometimes refer to a dog, other
times to a human.

10. Why are we studying this
theory of language in art
class? Does this mean visual
imagery is like a language?
To some extent, yes.

11. How do these insights help us
to understand the language of
visual imagery?
Let’s work with an example: the semiotics of the
color red.

12. What does red mean
in this context?

13. What does red mean in
this context?

14. Jessica Alba for Campari
Limited edition calendar, 2009
What does red mean in this context?

15. There is no simple equation (signifier (red)=signified (x).
The signified depends in part upon the context in which you find
the signifier.

16. So, what do you think red means in these next examples?

17. Mark Rothko
Untitled, 1960
oil on canvas
56 1/8 x 54 1/8
inches

18. Gerhard Richter, Party, 1963
Oil, nails and cord on canvas and newspaper
72 x 60 inches

19. Working as a group, use what
we learned tonight about semiotic
analysis to work on the possible
meanings of this picture.
1. Identify some major "signifiers" in the
painting. These are the visual elements
of the picture that you believe carry
the most meaning.
2. For each signifier you identify, come
up with a range of possible meanings
(or "signifieds") you think it might
indicate.
3. Write a sentence that gives an overall
interpretation. What does this picture
as a whole mean, based upon your
semiotic analysis of the individual
signifiers? What do you think the artist
is pointing toward by putting these
elements together in this way?