Visualizing Theory

“Founding of the Nation” is an oil painting created by artists Zhao Yu and Jin Shanyi in 1980. The theme of this painting is the proclamation of the establishment of the Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) on October 1, 1949, on the Tiananmen Gate Tower in Beijing. Interestingly, this version which we often see in public media is commonly mistaken for the original version created by artist Dong Xiwen in 1953, but in fact, it is not. After Mao Zedong's death in 1976, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) once again issued an order for the painting to be recreated. Thus, this painting is actually the fifth version, based on modifications of Dong Xiwen’s original. In the painting, Mao Zedong, the then Chairman of the Central Committee of the CCP, is positioned at the center of the painting, holding a manuscript and standing in front of a row of speakers, his expression serene yet dignified. Behind him stand the most important leaders of ...

     On January 1st, 1994, the Mexican government was ready to move into the "first-world" with the official start of NAFTA, an agreement that removed or reduced tariffs on goods moving in and out of the US, Mexico, and Canada. However, on the same day, the Zapatista Army of National Liberation entered a 10-day armed conflict with the government and state of Mexico, until the government called for a ceasefire. The conflict exposed the marginalization, poverty, discrimination, and political exclusion the indigenous populations in Mexico faced, and revealed the ways in which the state had contributed to these grievances (van der Harr 2004).     After the demands for indigenous autonomy and representation were not met by the government, the push against neoliberalism and the dire need for autonomy from the nation-state led to the Zapatistas forming  "autonomous municipalities" in Chiapas, Mexico in 2003. The Zapatistas worked to create completely self-regulate...

        Religion has been highly influential and a major contributor to society since humans roamed the Earth. The impact that faith can have on a community can even determine the success or failure of an economy. Despite the fact of having little to no evidence of a higher being, people still choose to believe in a superior figure to guide them through life. The image shown above is of the United States first president, George Washington. He can be seen sitting in the center of the image with several other Greek Gods and Goddesses surrounding him in a circular formation. We can also see a woman warrior below him in a fighting stance with a bald eagle following her into a potential battle. She is seen holding a patriotic shield and wearing the colors of the American flag. This edited image is reminiscent of paintings for Greek mythology. We know this by the classic robed figures and symbolic items the other people are holding. Washington is meant to take the pla...

     The picture above is from a scene in the movie Django Unchained.  The scene is set in an old western town somewhere in Texas. The year is 1858 which is about 3 years before the civil war. The man on the left is the main character Django Freeman. He is a freed slave that is working with the man on the right, Dr. King Schultz. Dr. Schultz is a bounty hunter who needs Django's help to find a bounty. In this scene, Dr. Schultz and Django ride into town on their respective horses. It makes the townspeople uneasy that a black man is riding a horse in their town. They then enter a saloon looking to quench their thirst. The bartender is startled when he sees that Dr. Schultz brought a black man into the bar. It doesn't show it on screen, but the viewer is left to assume that Dr. Schultz threw the bartender out of the saloon asking him to get the sheriff. When the sheriff arrives, he asks Dr. Schultz and Django to come out of the saloon and stop bothering the nice p...

     The image above accompanies a piece in the Global Times titled, "US irrational hostility toward China a coldly rational ploy". Accordingly, the image depicts a charged face-off of between a bald eagle and panda bear, meant to represent the United States and China respectively. The eagle's brow is sharply furrowed, pupil directed menacingly at its opponent. Its beak is set in a grimace, harsh lines contributing to its severe disposition. Across the border, the normally docile image of a panda is perverted with the black spot over its eye distorted to resemble a knitted brow. The edge of its mouth is drawn down in an angry frown as it glares at the eagle. The two animals are set against a backdrop of the American and Chinese flags, the two countries literally competing for space within the frame. A sharp diagonal line cuts through the tension, separating the two opposing sides. In this struggle, the red, white, and blue of the American flag appear to overpower the red...

The image above depicts a scene from Orange is the New Black , about a woman whose life is turned upside down when she is sentenced to serve time in a women’s prison. The series showcases the lives and stories of the other inmates while providing a multifaceted portrayal of women and how they navigate the complexities of prison life. This picture shows one of the inmates holding a gun to one of the prison’s correctional officers while the other inmates watch and seemingly cheer her on. This scene occurs due to a peaceful protest that resulted in one of the inmates being killed by a guard. Her death sparked rage amongst the other inmates, which led to chaos and violence throughout the prison. A guard was going to grab his gun from his holster when one of the inmates pushed him, causing him to drop it and allow another inmate to pick it up and ultimately point it at him. This scene highlights the change in the power dynamic between the correctional officers and the inmates.  In The C...

  In this photograph, Donald Trump, standing next to the sign for St. John's Church in Washington D.C. holds a hardcover Bible over his right shoulder (the viewer's left). Trump's expression is one of concentration, severity, and distress. His posture and serious features suggest that the matter at hand is one of great importance. Moreover, his position in the foreground marks him as the most important figure, and draws the eye to the center of the image. Trump is dressed formally, wearing a white shirt, blue tie, and navy suit with an American flag pin on the lapel. Although the pin is difficult to make out in the image, it still clearly symbolizes an alliance to the U.S. There is a letter board to Trump's left (the viewer's right) that welcomes new and returning members to Sunday service in addition to listing the various names of the parish's clergy. Both Trump and the sign stand out from the lighter background, which indicates an association between the two;...

       This image is a recreation of what is considered to be Joseph Smith and the process of receiving the gold plates from Angel Moroni. These gold plates would then be translated into what is now considered the Book of Mormon. Beyond what can just be seen on the surface of this painting, the depiction of the angel as a holy figure being dressed in white and reaching out their hand as to almost welcome Joseph Smith. The angel also seems to have a this aura around it that is white which can overall, act as a sense of purity that the angel possess that mere mortals may not. It is also notable that Joseph Smith is also seen to be kneeling as giving a sign of respect to a higher power. The image's setting also seems to be quite significant as the location seems to be in the middle of the woods signifying that no others were around to see this momentous event that would ultimately be the beginning point of Mormon as a religion and the creation of the Book of Mormon. ...

      This image is a screenshot from a video captured by the Guardian, a bird's eye view of a mass demonstration in Yemen; protestors are protesting against the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and against US-British retaliation against Houthi rebels who attacked US vessels in the Red Sea. In this image, we see a mass: thousands of individuals who gathered, chanting “Death to the United States,” carrying the Yemeni and Palestinian flag side by side. The orientation of the protestors is organized, tightly packed in what appears to be a large road. The Palestinian flags are the largest flags represented, captured perfectly when viewed from above. These protestors are uniformed, organized, and when you hear the audio from the clip captured–passionately calling for Palestinian liberation from the occupation. Yet what interests me is how this photo–to Western audiences–interacts with contradicting ideas of what and who is afforded liberty, and who gets to decide that....

  In the picture above, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is signing into law the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill (aka the ‘Parental Rights in Education’ bill), a law that prohibits teachers in Florida from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity through the third grade, with the addition that if such discussions were to occur in subsequent grades that students would have to be “developmentally” appropriate. The picture depicts DeSantis with the bill in front of him, signing the bill with a blue Sharpie. There are eight Sharpies (in addition to the one he holds in his right hand) framing the paper containing the bill itself, perhaps in case he wants to write each letter of his name with a different marker. DeSantis seems formal as he signs the bill, wearing a suit and a focused face- his wedding ring proudly on display on his left hand. The Governor is surrounded by seven children, all wearing blue school uniforms courtesy of the Classical Preparatory School in Spring Hill Florida where ...

  At first glance, with no context, these two photos seem like two women's basketball players doing the same celebration, but they have not been understood as the same in the media. On the left is a controversial photo taken after the 2023 NCAA tournament in which Angles Reese is doing the "you can't see me" taunt toward Caitlin Clark, indicating that LSU won. At this moment, Reese follows Clark while doing the "you can't see me" taunt and points to her ring finger after the game, causing an uproar on social media. Many people were shaming Reese for doing this, most notably David Portnoy of Barstool Sports, calling her a "classless piece of sh*t." However, a week prior, the photo on the right was taken, and a different response from the media followed. Clark doing the same taunt toward Hailey Van Lith, a player on Louisville, elicited a positive response, with people calling her a passionate player and a remarkable person. After Clark did it, s...

  This is an image of an anti-trans protest, dubbed "Rally to End Child Mutilation," in Tennessee from October of 2022 in which conservatives railed against gender-affirming healthcare for trans minors. The image depicts a clumped crowd of assorted people, the majority of whom face away from the camera or are angled toward the left, indicating that they may have been marching or watching a speaker. The crowd is mostly white and visually appears to contain men and women of older ages. Many people hold up signs of various colors and sporting printed or hand-drawn words, such as “DO NO HARM,” “VOTE REPUBLICAN,” etc (Farmer 2022). The focal point of the image, however, presides in the right half of the frame–a man dressed in a gray and white flannel and tan puffer vest. His face is mostly hidden behind a bright yellow sunflower-colored sign that he holds up in the direction of the camera. Unlike the other signs, this one is easy to read; it says, “MUTILATION ≠ MEDICINE,” with eac...

       https://images.app.goo.gl/fPSPyuM49wqkXw279   This image depicts a political rally where a large crowd of people are gathered together outside. Three of them are  holding American flags, two of which are raised in the air and one where only the top corner is visible. One person holds a large white sign with "JESUS" written on it in big red letters. The numbers 201 are visible in dark blue, with the last number being obscured. The faces of most of the people are very blurred, but their hats, coats, glasses and hooded jackets are visible. One person's eyes are looking directly at the camera, and they are wearing glasses and a baseball cap, but the second half of their face is obscured.  A tree is visible beside the crowd of people but it is out of focus. This image depicts a rally where American Christianity is being represented as a political identity through the lens of civil religion and religious nationalism.    In Robert N. Bellah's...

       The above image depicts a scene from  Selling Sunset , a reality tv show that revolves around the Oppenheim group, a high-end real estate brokerage in Los Angeles, California. The show is not only about selling expensive houses in LA, but about the drama intertwined with the lives of the brokers. This image contains four of the brokers, as they are enjoying themselves at the opening party of their newly designed office, just down the street from their last. This image portrays the inaugural ringing of their new bell, which is rung when a broker closes on a property. This image signifies the continuing on of the business and bell ringing tradition. The shine and size of the bell create a focal point for the images, and then viewers' eyes follow the arms of the women to then reveal their faces. The facial expressions are an important aspect of this image as the two on the right seem ecstatic while the two on the left seem confused or potentially caught...