Di Sara De Simone, corso CoDe, Matricola P42000083
The seminar "Blindness of Seeing, Archaeology of Vision and Its Future" explored the importance of vision, the
formation of images, and the perception of reality. The focal point of the discussion was the book "Blindness of
Seeing. On the Origin of Images" by the author Agostino De Rosa.
Agostino De Rosa is an architect, professor, and scientific coordinator of the research group "Imago rerum" at the
University Iuav of Venice. He is the author of several books on representation and images and collaborates with
various artists, including James Turrell and John Luther Adams.
One of my objectives in attending the seminar was to gain new reflective insights into the concept of an image and
visual perception and to understand different ways of looking at our surroundings. The issue that I found most
intriguing was related to blindness, darkness, and its opposite, vision, as knowledge and truth.
Agostino De Rosa began his discourse by questioning whether the images that form within us are true or filtered
representations, and where they go after being generated. We have all experienced darkness and nothingness, even if
we do not remember it—the void before birth, the darkness of early childhood. When do we transition from seeing to
truly looking?
This led Agostino to assert that the exploration of vision, representation, and their absence is the narrative of the
experience of existence and being human, guiding us through the labyrinth of our sight.
Western culture has long been convinced that vision coincides with knowledge and truth, dating back to the times of
Plato, who proposed the opposition of reality-representation and the allegory of the cave. Agostino De Rosa treated
the subject as a starting point for reflecting on the concept of truth. Where does the connection between vision and
knowledge originate? Is what Plato claimed true?
The allegory describes a group of people trapped in a cave, only observing shadows projected by a fire. These
shadows represent their limited and distorted reality. One of them chooses to leave the cave to see the outside world
and discovers that what he saw before was just a false image. This tale symbolizes the pursuit of truth and the need to
overcome the limited perception of the world to reach a deeper and truer understanding.
What De Rosa does is propose a parallel between the cave and ourselves—what we have imagined as a physical place
is actually located within us. We believe that the truth is hidden in the cosmos, trying to escape the world to find the
hearth and the true sunlight when, in reality, we are our own prison.
Regarding the question of truth and visual perception, Agostino proposed the analysis of a theatrical work: "Molly
Sweeney" by Brian Friel, which tells the story of a blind woman who, after deciding to undergo surgery to regain her
sight, discovers uncomfortable truths about her marriage and ultimately commits suicide. The work consists of three
monologues exploring the themes of perception, truth, and the consequences that can arise from discovering these
truths.
Finally, Agostino presented two case studies on physiological blindness and synesthetic perception, those of John Hull
and Hugues De Montalembert, raising the question of what true blindness is.
In conclusion, Agostino De Rosa's seminar offered an original and stimulating insight into human visual perception,
challenging some of our certainties and paving the way for further reflections and investigations on the subject.
Personally, I understood how De Rosa prompts us to ask questions but does not provide answers. "Blindness of
Seeing" guides us and presents us with a choice, an issue we were not aware of having to confront before. We are left
to ourselves, to remain in the darkness of our heart where we were born, where there is no consciousness and
suffering, or to move towards the light. Do we trust our eyes, believe that the light we see is true, and let it give
substance to what we create and love? But are we sure we are looking at the light of the sky and not that of the
projector?