GRE Reading Comprehension
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Source: 1996
In 1923 the innovative Russian filmmaker Dziga Vertov described filmmaking as a process that leads viewers toward a "fresh perception of the world." Vertov's description of filmmaking should apply to films on the subject of art. Yet films on art have not had a powerful and pervasive effect on the way we see.
Publications on art flourish, but these books and articles do not necessarily succeed in teaching us to see more deeply or more clearly. Much writing in art history advances the discourse in the field but is unlikely to inform the eye of one unfamiliar with its polemics. Films, however, with their capacity to present material visually and to reach a broader audience, have the potential to enhance visual literacy (the ability to identify the details that characterize a particular style) more effectively than publications can. Unfortunately, few of the hundred or so films on art that are made each year in the United States are broadcast nationally on prime- time television.
The fact that films on art are rarely seen on prime-time television may be due not only to limitations on distribution but also to the shortcomings of many such films. Some of these shortcomings can be attributed to the failure of art historians and filmmakers to collaborate closely enough when making films on art. These professionals are able, within their respective disciplines, to increase our aware- ness of visual forms. For close collaboration to occur, professionals in each discipline need to recognize that films on art can be both educational and entertaining, but this will require compromise on both sides.
A filmmaker who is creating a film about the work of an artist should not follow the standards set by rock videos and advertising. Filmmakers need to resist the impulse to move the camera quickly from detail to detail for fear of boring the viewer, to frame the image for the sake of drama alone, to add music for fear of silence. Filmmakers are aware that an art object demands concentration and, at the same time, are concerned that it may not be compelling enough―and so they hope to provide relief by interposing "real" scenes that bear only a tangential relationship to the subject. But a work of art needs to be explored on its own terms. On the other hand, art historians need to trust that one can indicate and analyze, not solely with words, but also by directing the viewer's gaze. The specialized written language of art history needs to be relinquished or at least tempered for the screen. Only an effective collaboration between filmmakers and art historians can create films that will enhance viewers' perceptions of art.
The author would most likely agree with which of the following statements about film and visual literacy?
- A Reading a publication about a work of art andthen seeing a film about the same work is themost effective way to develop visual literacy.
- B An increase in a viewer's awareness of visualforms will also lead to an increased attentionspan.
- C Film has a great but not yet fully exploited capac- ity to increase viewers' awareness of visualforms.
- D A film that focuses on the details of a work of artwill hinder the development of visual literacy.
- E Films on art would more effectively enhance thevisual literacy of teenagers if filmmakersfollowed the standards set by rock videos.