Icon(icity) and causality: On the role of indexical semiotic modes in development of Byzantine art

2017 ◽  
pp. 711-726
Author(s):  
Todor Mitrovic

Determined by its biblical origins, the birth of specifically Christian visual culture had to be given through overcoming the inevitable resistance of early church towards images. In order to find its stable place on late antique cultural scene, early byzantine art, thus, had to rely on support of religious and cultural patterns remote of magisterial artistic trends. Among those, contemporary theory recognizes as especially important: 1) cult of relics and 2) sealing practices. Crossing the possibility of theoretical definition of unique semiotic model standing behind those two cultural- religious practices with the fact that after iconoclasm byzantine art will be systematically distanced from both of them, this research attempts to explore the relation between iconophile theory and byzantine artistic production from a yet unexplored interpretative position. Hypothesis that category of indexical sign, as it is proposed by contemporary semiotics (based on Peircean legacy), can be used for extraction of this unique semiotic model is used here as a specific methodological tool for re-approach to both - 1) the pre-iconoclastic need for accentuating the indexical aspects of iconic images and 2) the mystery of post-iconoclastic radical distancing towards such a semiotic need. On the basis of such an integrated approach it is possible not only to search for more precise explanation of co-relations between artistic practices and contemporaneous (iconophile) theory, but to explain curious historical delay in application of this theoretic knowledge in artistic and liturgical realms, together with a late outburst of iconoclastic behaviour provoked by this very delay. Namely, one of the most prominent incarnations of pre-iconoclastic need for ?indexicalisation? of iconic medium, the mysterious Mandylion from Edessa, had very curious role in historical development of post-iconoclastic plastic arts in Byzantium. This specific object was miraculously and undividedly uniting both key indexical aspects of pre-iconoclastic cognitive settings in one icon - causally connected with the archetypehimself. However, exactly this kind of synthetic, relic-seal-image status turned out to be the specific semiotic stumbling stone in the process of application of iconophile theory in liturgical arts. This is why in XI century byzantine church decided to refrain Mandylion from public life for good and lock it in court chapel, under the protection of the emperor himself. As one of the most curious theological decisions of medieval Christianity, this extraordinary semiotic conversion was, actually, the final step in application of the most advanced achievements of the late iconophile theory, which was, at the same time, the first step in development of artistic system relaxed from the pressure of need for legalistic, causal validation of pictorial language.

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Dörrzapf ◽  
Anna Kovács-Győri ◽  
Bernd Resch ◽  
Peter Zeile

AbstractWalking as a transport mode is still often underrepresented in the overall transport system. Consequently, pedestrian mobility is usually not recorded statistically in the same manner as it is performed for motorised traffic which leads to an underestimation of its importance and positive effects on people and cities. However, the integration of walkability assessments is potentially a valuable complement in urban planning processes through considering important quantitative and qualitative aspects of walking in cities. Recent literature shows a variety of approaches involving discrepancies in the definition of walkability, the factors which contribute to it, and methods of assessing them. This paper provides a new understanding of the concept of walkability in the European context. Our approach relies on the extension of methodological competence in transportation, spatial planning and geography by linking new measurement methods for evaluating walkability. We propose an integrated approach to assessing walkability in a comprehensive methodology that combines existing qualitative and GIS-based methods with biosensor technologies and thus captures the perceptions and emotions of pedestrians. This results in an increased plausibility and relevance of the results of walkability analysis by considering the spatial environment and its effect on people.


Mediaevistik ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 377-379
Author(s):  
Kriszta Kotsis

Late antique and early medieval graphic signs have traditionally been studied by narrowly focused specialists leading to the fragmentation and decontextualization of this important body of material. Therefore, the volume aims “to deepen interdisciplinary research on graphic signs” (7) of the third through tenth centuries, with contributions from archaeologists, historians, art historians, a philologist, and a paleographer. Ildar Garipzanov’s introduction defines the central terms (sign, symbol, graphicacy), calls for supplanting the text-image binary with “the concept of the visual-written continuum” (15), and argues that graphicacy was central to visual communication in this period. He emphasizes the agency of graphic signs and notes that their study can amplify our understanding of the definition of personal and group identity, the articulation of power, authority, and religious affiliation, and communication with the supernatural sphere.


Author(s):  
Valery Borzunov

Subject of study. A set of relations that are formed in the process of determining models of sustainable development of Ukraine and the principles of designing the economy of the future. Purpose of the article: research of the main directions of sustainable development of Ukraine and the formation of principles of strategy. Research methodology. Scientific novelty of the work, the theoretical and methodological basis of the research is the system of both general scientific and special methods of scientific knowledge, the fundamental provisions of modern economic theory and practice. The proposed methodology of a system-integrated approach to the formation of basic models of man-centered, multispiral, sustainable development of Ukraine. As integrity in the organic unity of the prevailing prerequisites for the formation of the principles of strategizing. Scientific novelty lies in the definition of models for sustainable development of Ukraine and the principles of designing the economy of the future. Results of the work – the applied use of scientific results of improved approaches for the development and implementation of a strategy for human- centered, polyspiral, sustainable development is proposed. Conclusions. For 30 years of independence, Ukraine has turned from an industrially developed country into a backward and poorest country in Europe with an economy of lagging growth, the status of a «buffer zone» of geopolitical conflict on its territory and external control. To maintain sovereignty, ensure the country's competitiveness in the context of the transition to new technological paradigms and the quality of life of the population, at least at the average level for the EU countries, Ukraine needs to change course, develop and implement the «Strategy of human-centrist, multi-spiral, sustainable development».


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-67
Author(s):  
Marta Iwaszuk

Thesis: Aim of the paper is to present Melanie Klein and Charles S. Peirce concept of symbol in order to combine them into scheme that presents conscious and unconscious aspect of thinking through symbolic signs (signs based on convention). Presented concepts: Paper presents concept of symbol in psychoanalytical and semiotic perspective. Psychoanalytical view is based on interpretation of symbol according to object relation paradigm proposed by Klein. There are two reasons for selecting her theory for the model: it is most closely bound with interdependency between communication and thinking plus her concept of proper symbol fulfills definition of symbolic sign in Peirce theory, due to deployment of matter of absence in substitution process. Peirce theory however is selected to present semiotic perspective not only for its good linkage to Klein’s “proper symbol” but also for its accurate understating of object representation in quasi- mind through Representamen and as a result recognition of symbol embedment in code through unlimited semiosis. Chosen concepts are consolidated into psycho-semiotic model of thinking which recognizes symbol to be co-created by unique internal world of unconscious phantasy with simultaneous employment of semiotic devices oriented to external, group order perspective. Results and conclusions: Proposed psycho-semiotic model of thinking enhances psychoanalytic view, based on drive for object, by recognizing communication means required for meaningful relation and with that for thinking itself. As a result conceptualizing thinking processes is enriched with semiotic discoveries such as mechanics and structure of Representamen and Interpretant, along with indispensable code rules, with unlimited semiosis at its core. In turn psychoanalytical view adds to semiotic perspective sensitivity to individual potential and constrains when code is in use and with that raises precision of exploration in the field. Contribution to the field: Proposed model enriches theory of thinking based on object relations with semiotic sign theory, which being focused on communication serves as a frame for establishing object relations and their conceptualization. In turn employing psychoanalytic perspective into semiotic field brings back code theory to actual code usage, and by that expands it to various unconscious forces, which ultimately determine Interpretant


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (87) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonid Katranzhy ◽  
◽  
Kateryna Novik ◽  

The theoretical bases of essence of management of financial and economic safety of the enterprise are investigated. It is noted that in the scientific literature there is a huge number of opinions on the essence of the concept of financial and economic security, which is quite new in domestic economics. It is established that financial and economic security is an important system for ensuring the resilience of the enterprise to the changing external environment, and therefore consists of many effectively interconnected elements. The high level of financial and economic security of the enterprise is due only to a well-thought-out concept that operates at a particular enterprise and includes means, measures and methods to ensure financial stability and economic development of the enterprise. The process of managing the financial and economic security of the enterprise is divided into several successive stages: clear definition of the interests of the enterprise, forecasting possible threats, assessing the level of financial and economic security of the enterprise and comparing it with the normative, budgeting of financial and economic security, feedback in the implementation of measures by adjusting them. It is revealed that the integrated approach in the assessment of the level of financial and economic security of the enterprise is the most acceptable for domestic enterprises due to the coverage of a large number of important performance indicators in one integrated indicator. We have improved the method of assessing the level of financial and economic security of the enterprise, proposed by scientists N.V. Bondarchuk and M. Humenchuk, in accordance with the specifics of the activities of Altair + LLC. Along with the financial gaps, which these scientists propose to analyze in the process of assessing the financial and economic security of the enterprise, we proposed to analyze the technical, organizational, personnel and integration characteristics. It has been proved that the improved methodology is effective and allows to objectively assess the financial and economic security of Altair + LLC, as well as to identify reserves for improving the company.


Author(s):  
Zinovii Pankiv

The structure of soils in Carpathian region of Ukraine, which is involved for agricultural land use, including for arable land, has been analyzed. The basic steps to increase the area of arable land have been described. Integrated approach with using spatial, legal, environmental, and economic performance has been proposed for definition of the efficiency of agricultural land use. The appellation “soil use” for characteristic the type using of agricultural land resources has been proposed. Key words: productive soils, land use, the Carpathian region of Ukraine, soil use


2008 ◽  
pp. 2500-2504
Author(s):  
Eun G. Park

Trust is one of the key factors that emerged as a significant concept in virtual communities. Trust is so complicated that it is hard to define in one standardized way. Trust issues have evolved into two major ways in the fields of virtual community and security. Among a huge literature concerning trust in virtual communities, a majority of literature addresses technical solutions on trust-building by providing new Web-based applications. They range from human users authorization, semantic Web, agent technologies and access control of network to W3C standardization for content trust and security. Some examples include AT&T’s Policymaker or IBM’s Trust Establishment Module (Blaze, Feigenbaum, & Lacy, 1996; Herzberg, 2000). Only a minority deals with understanding the concept of trust and sources of trust-building from social and cultural aspects. It appears to miss the essence of trust in virtual communities, although an integrated approach is needed for building trust in communication and the use of virtual communities. This article aims to present the definition of trust and relevant concepts for recognizing sources of trust-building in virtual communities. This article also presents future research implications for further development on trust and trust-building in virtual communities.


Author(s):  
Eun G. Park

Trust is one of the key factors that emerged as a significant concept in virtual communities. Trust is so complicated that it is hard to define in one standardized way. Trust issues have evolved into two major ways in the fields of virtual community and security. Among a huge literature concerning trust in virtual communities, a majority of literature addresses technical solutions on trust-building by providing new Web-based applications. They range from human users authorization, semantic Web, agent technologies and access control of network to W3C standardization for content trust and security. Some examples include AT&T’s Policymaker or IBM’s Trust Establishment Module (Blaze, Feigenbaum, & Lacy, 1996; Herzberg, 2000). Only a minority deals with understanding the concept of trust and sources of trust-building from social and cultural aspects. It appears to miss the essence of trust in virtual communities, although an integrated approach is needed for building trust in communication and the use of virtual communities. This article aims to present the definition of trust and relevant concepts for recognizing sources of trust-building in virtual communities. This article also presents future research implications for further development on trust and trust-building in virtual communities.


Drones ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 48
Author(s):  
Amin Majd ◽  
Mohammad Loni ◽  
Golnaz Sahebi ◽  
Masoud Daneshtalab

Interest is growing in the use of autonomous swarms of drones in various mission-physical applications such as surveillance, intelligent monitoring, and rescue operations. Swarm systems should fulfill safety and efficiency constraints in order to guarantee dependable operations. To maximize motion safety, we should design the swarm system in such a way that drones do not collide with each other and/or other objects in the operating environment. On other hand, to ensure that the drones have sufficient resources to complete the required task reliably, we should also achieve efficiency while implementing the mission, by minimizing the travelling distance of the drones. In this paper, we propose a novel integrated approach that maximizes motion safety and efficiency while planning and controlling the operation of the swarm of drones. To achieve this goal, we propose a novel parallel evolutionary-based swarm mission planning algorithm. The evolutionary computing allows us to plan and optimize the routes of the drones at the run-time to maximize safety while minimizing travelling distance as the efficiency objective. In order to fulfill the defined constraints efficiently, our solution promotes a holistic approach that considers the whole design process from the definition of formal requirements through the software development. The results of benchmarking demonstrate that our approach improves the route efficiency by up to 10% route efficiency without any crashes in controlling swarms compared to state-of-the-art solutions.


Art History ◽  
2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellen C. Schwartz

Byzantine art and architecture may be defined as the artistic production of the eastern Mediterranean region that developed into an orthodox set of societies after the relocation of the Roman capital to Constantinople in 330 ce. While there is a debate about the use of the term “Roman” for emperors as late as Justinian (r. 526–565), the churches and their decoration in Ravenna, as well as the 6th-century purple Bible and Gospel manuscripts clearly show the beginnings of the new iconographic and stylistic concerns that we call “Byzantine.” While Byzantium itself was conquered when the capital fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the types of buildings and the traditions of monumental and portable arts continued on, even to the present day in places such as Mount Athos. Thus it is hard to define the era with clear-cut beginning and endpoints. It is similarly difficult to define Byzantine architecture and art in geographic terms. The quintessential middle Byzantine church type, the cross-in-square, continues in Russian churches in contemporary times. Elements of style in icon painting are preserved as well. The orthodox traditions that are expressed in these artistic forms cover much of eastern Europe; autocephalous churches form part of the orthodox confession despite the differences in language as well as the addition of some local saints. Areas included in what has been called the “Byzantine Commonwealth” include Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Russia, and parts of Albania and Romania, among others. The relationship of the style to Italy has never been satisfactorily explored. Byzantine art and architecture have largely been studied in terms of religious buildings, decoration, reception, and liturgical use. New approaches such as the study of gender, light, and sound (both vocal and musical) in Byzantine art are yielding significant results. Recently, secular arts have begun to form a focus of examination. New technologies have allowed closer viewing of objects such as ivories; modern approaches have also been applied to the consideration of Byzantine buildings and artifacts, yielding innovative interpretations. Although a tiny fraction of what we believe was created still exists, Byzantine art has continued to fascinate viewers as seen by a number of recent exhibitions worldwide.


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