How is art seen? Perception and Thought in Prehistoric Art
2023, Call for Papers, Session How is art seen? Perception and Thought in Prehistoric Art EAA 29th Annual Meeting
How are landscapes, artefacts and ways of perceiving the world linked, and how do they interact? Every prehistoric art tradition has its own distribution, ornamental structures, designs and techniques, but to what extent are these features linked to thought systems, and how do they change over time? Considering that material culture, and more specifically prehistoric art, such as rock art, sculpture, stelae and portable art, are closely related to the sociocultural systems within which it is produced, it is assumed that the various forms that it can take reflect the cultural thoughts of the artists or artisans. Likewise, we can invert this relationship and reflect on how art and material culture influence society's thought processes. What is the role of location patterns, visibility, decorative structures in the (re)production of ideology, social systems and ways of conceiving the world?, What visual response and movement does prehistoric art produce? In this session we will explore examples and illustrate how the entanglement between thought, society and prehistoric art can be explored. Studies developing, amongst others, approaches to emotion, sensoriality, embodiment, visual cognition and palaeopsychology, and reflections on the ontological and epistemological dimensions of these endeavours are welcome.