Power in human and animal societies relies on a visual and nonverbal dimension to project strength, communicate the capacity to ward off attack, and determine the most competent individuals to maintain group cohesion and welfare. For these reasons, organized politics has always included a visual dimension—both to convey the symbolism of powerful tribes and societies at an aggregate level and to communicate the expressive range and potency of leaders who seek to rule at an individual level. Beyond their practical and aesthetic value, the art and architecture of earlier eras stand as historical monuments to the power held by ruling members of societies past. Portraits (and carved busts before that) are particularly interesting because they can convey physical capacity and attractiveness—ideal types, in many cases, as opposed to the actual person—in addition to command over people and resources (Berger 1972). Such symbolism, mediated representations of power, and portrayals of leadership can all be analyzed as instances of visual politics.

中文翻译：

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编辑介绍：视觉政治，大型合作计划以及大胆思考的机会

人类和动物社会中的权力取决于视觉和非语言维度，以投射力量，传达抵御攻击的能力以及确定最能胜任的个人，以保持团队凝聚力和福祉。由于这些原因，有组织的政治总是包含一个视觉方面的-既可以在总体上传达强大的部落和社会的象征意义，又可以传达试图在个人层面上进行统治的领导人的表达范围和效力。除了其实用性和美学价值外，早期时代的艺术和建筑还成为过去统治社会的力量所拥有的历史纪念碑。肖像画（以及之前雕刻的半身像）特别有趣，因为它们可以传达身体的力量和吸引力-在许多情况下，理想的类型是 而不是实际的人—除了对人和资源的控制之外（Berger 1972）。这样的象征，权力的中介表现和领导形象都可以作为视觉政治的实例进行分析。