Ways of Seeing Tom Polo
As an academic discipline, the history of art is predominantly taught through the medium of painting. Specifically, it is the development of figurative and representational painting which forms a fundamental part of Western art historical pedagogy. To teach the work of Michelangelo or Manet (one would argue) is to ensure that students understand the social and political value painting once gave to the Western world as its dominant mode of visual expression. The broader rationale, of course, is for students to sharpen skills in visual analysis through discerning the work of artists now deemed as masters.
Yet, beyond the confines of institutionalised learning, figurative painting has for centuries beguiled the imaginations of many others. It
