Ways of Seeing by John Berger
The Television Series and Book
The paperback edition is available in the in the Horner ‘Book Corner’ of CameraWork45
Produced by the BBC and broadcast in 1972 in four parts and still available today on YouTube, the series inspired the book , divided into 7 essays developed by Berger and other 4 contributors. John Berger(1926-2017) in the book clearly credits Walter Benjamin’s essay “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” . Both the series and essays are invitations to reflect on how we see and on how what we see is portrayed. Deep but very accessible, definitely worth reading and or watching. To be noted the first television episodes is a reflection on photography’s impact on both the accessibility of classic art forms and on the way we perceive them.
For some reason beyond me the BBC no longer hosts these videos on their player .
Links to the Series on YouTube (email Chris at camerawork45@gmail.com if there are any issues there). Each episode lasts about 30 minutes
Read more about John Peter Berger Read more about Walter Benjamin