The best art makes you feel something even if you don’t fully understand it, and visuals are powerful tools that can tell stories across many barriers. From birth we are taught to process images before words; visual storytelling is using images to create a meaningful connection with an audience on a more immediate level.
Like any form of storytelling, there are different tropes that can be used to better get your point across: guides like authenticity and sensory reactions, and archetypes that can be applied like dramatic triangle of prosecutor, victim and protector.
El Desperado v. Hiromu Takahashi at Best Of Super Juniors 27
Growing up, my dad got me into professional wrestling. It definitely has its flaws but there is a very good base for story telling through action. I always tell my friends who come to shows with me that they don’t have to know what’s going on to enjoy the performance. For example, here is a screenshot from New Japan’s Super Junior’s Tournament. These two performers have had a long, complicated rivalry, and the screenshot suggests that this conflict is personal.
In the image we have two men, one standing above the other. What immediately draws the eye is that one of the men is wearing a mask, but it’s been ripped. For luchadores, or any other person who chooses to wear a mask, showing their face is sacrosanct, so the mask wearer does not want their face to be seen. But here we have a man with a torn mask paying it no mind, staring into the eyes of his opponent. He’s solely focused on this feud, this rivalry, and his identity is second to it.
The archetypes shown here are the ruler (the man above in control) and the underdog (the man who appears to have nothing to lose). While the context is niche, the story here is classic.
Continuing the thread of modern reflecting classic…
Ilya Repin’s Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan // Shawn Michaels v. Hulk Hogan at SummerSlam 2005
The painting on the left tells the story of a fight, regret and horror at what one has done. The room is in disarray; the overturned table and rug show there was a struggle. The “winner” is now cradling the injured man in his arms, eyes wide in terror. The man in black looks as close to death as the bleeding man, the gravity of his actions leaving him gaunt and haunted. There is an authentic feeling of horror and regret displayed in this image.
The second image is also dripping with blood and regret. This is Shawn Michaels and Hulk Hogan after Summerslam 2005. As in the first image, regret is a very prominent emotion in this scene. The way the one man is cradling the other, the concern in his eyes suggest that the man beneath him means something to him personally, but also that he is the reason the other is bleeding. The people behind them don’t seem to be applauding, suggesting this isn’t the outcome the crowd wanted.
Sixers v. Lakers NBA Finals 2001 // Giovanni Baglione’s Sacred Love and Profane Love
If you’ve ever been anywhere near Philadelphia, you’ve seen the image on the right. Taken during Game One of the 2001 NBA Finals, it depicts Allen Iverson stepping over Tyron Lue after hitting a jump shot. Even to someone like me who used to know nothing about basketball, this image tells the dramatic story of competition and rivalry. There is no polite way to step over someone.
They’re wearing different uniforms, which is a good indication of rivals. The man in yellow’s face says disbelief and the man in black’s face is nothing but gloating. The faces around them are a mix of shock and disapproval. It is very clear who came out on top in this match up and how everyone feels about the outcome.
On the left, Baglione’s painting Sacred Love and Profane Love depicts sacred love (selfless, unconditional love) portrayed as an angelic figure standing over profane love (romantic or sexual love), represented by Cupid and the Devil. The angelic figure stands between Cupid, who is on the right, from the Devil on the left, who gazes out with a grimace. The angelic figure is bathed in light while the other two figures fall into the shadows. The angelic figure in the middle assumes the role of the ruler or the rescuer as they reach towards Cupid, whose expression would suggest they are the victim. That leaves the Devil to be the persecutor.
David de las Heras’ The Red Cloud // Ari Aster’s Hereditary (2018) //
In this first image, something is out of place. The scene is completely normal except for a subject, whose head is on fire. This image’s main subject is surprising; it raises more questions than the answers it gives. The figure in this painting is calm, shoulders slumped, slowly making their way across a field. Despite their head being on fire. The scene gives a sense of a quiet kind of simmering, a lonely kind of stress that the subject is powerless to.
The second image is from the movie Hereditary. In this scene, Toni Colette has just explained to her husband that she feels something supernatural is happening to her family after the death of her daughter. This is the tipping point towards a spiral into psychosis, sparked by her husband spontaneous catching fire from the fireplace.
Looking at this image raises the question: Why is someone so neatly of fire in an otherwise untouched room? And why is the other person in the room making no move to help?
The fire frames the main subject. Beyond the urgency of someone being on fire, this image gives a sense of powerlessness with the scene before her: she’s facing the out-of-control fire in the fireplace and the person on fire before her, and she has nothing to put either out. Her body language is tense and frozen. There is a clear sense of panic and paralyzing shock in this image. This reflects the theme of powerlessness in the movie.
These images span a variety of artistic mediums, but they all harness similar characteristics to tell their story. These tropes are classic for a reason and by paying attention to them you can reach audiences no matter how you choose to tell your story.
Photo by Gemma Evans on Unsplash
Bergström, B. (2012). Chapter 2. In Essentials of Visual Communication (pp. 15–27). essay, Laurence King.
Lien, J. (2019, November 21). Worth 1,000 Words: The 4 Principles of Visual Storytelling. amplifi. https://amplifinp.com/blog/4-principles-visual-storytelling/.
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