Amy Herman: A lesson on looking
Amy Herman: Uma lição sobre o olhar
By showing people how to look closely at painting, sculpture and photography, Amy Herman helps them hone their visual intelligence to recognize the most pertinent and useful information as well as recognize biases that impede decision making. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
to be a grandfather clock
um relógio de caixa alta
leva a uma segunda.
that this entire work of art
Honduras mahogany.
de mogno hondurenho branqueado.
about looking at sculpture.
olhar para uma escultura.
that looking closely can save a life,
cuidadosamente pode salvar uma vida,
why your children behave the way they do.
os vossos filhos se portam como o fazem.
visual intelligence,
inteligência visual,
para ensinar toda a gente,
to those for whom looking is the job,
até observadores profissionais,
detectives and trauma nurses.
detectives de homicídios
you might be at looking,
que vocês possam ser a olhar,
to learn about seeing.
sobre observação.
in a first glance and a sudden flash,
entendemos à primeira vista,
how to look slowly
está em olhar com tempo
that demand our attention --
que pedem a nossa atenção —
those lenses to help us see
através destas lentes
todo este tempo.
and sculpture help?
e esculturas pode ajudar?
that engages both sight and insight
que relaciona visão com percepção
of where we are and what we see.
de onde estamos e o que vemos.
that visual intelligence --
seemingly abstract painting,
aparentemente abstracto,
me impressionava tão profundamente.
in person thousands of times,
pessoalmente milhares de vezes,
of marble a third of the way up,
a um terço da distância do topo,
at it out of context
fora de contexto
of this architectural icon made me realize
deste ícone da arquitectura
and eye-opening perspective.
that art just belongs in an art museum.
que a arte só deve aparecer num museu.
use beyond its aesthetic value.
além do seu valor estético.
in every audience I teach.
os públicos que ensino.
their legs are crossed,
as suas pernas cruzadas,
from this lady who talks fast
esta senhora que fala rápido
at the work of art,
about what they see.
sobre o que vêem.
that this entire work of art
toda esta obra de arte
interesting to some of you,
para muitos de vós,
with the work that these people do?
com o trabalho destas pessoas?
multiple times on a daily basis,
e diariamente com pessoas.
at asking questions
nas questões que colocamos
the question in such a way
a questão de tal forma
that we need to do our jobs,
para fazermos o nosso trabalho,
spaces in a painting
numa pintura
more discreet abnormalities in an MRI.
anomalias discretas numa ressonância.
that understanding the emotional dynamic
compreender a dinâmica emocional
at a domestic violence crime scene,
numa cena de violência doméstica,
before drawing and firing his weapon.
antes de empunhar e disparar a sua arma.
absences of color in paintings
ausências de cor em pinturas
what their children say to them
os seus filhos lhes dizem
more visually intelligent?
mais visualmente inteligente?
em qualquer novo problema,
"O que temos pela frente?"
De que não preciso?'
in a memo, in a text, in an email.
num memorando, num texto, num "email".
tomamos uma decisão.
múltiplas vezes por dia,
seeing and looking plays
que o olhar e o ver têm
can really improve everything.
pode realmente melhorar tudo.
of counterterrorism officials
oficiais de contraterrorismo
"The Purification of the Temple,"
'A Purificação do Templo',
in a sweeping and violent gesture,
varrendo num gesto violento,
from the temple of prayer.
do tempo de oração.
had five minutes with that painting,
esteve cinco minutos com este quadro,
they had to assess the situation,
tinham de avaliar a situação,
in that painting.
observations and insights differed.
as observações e avaliações diferiram.
came from a seasoned cop
veio de um polícia veterano
he's causing all the trouble."
pois está a causar confusão."
vehicle to rethink how we solve problems
de repensarmos como resolver problemas
of Felix Gonzalez-Torres,
Felix Gonzalez-Torres,
in perfect synchronicity.
em sincronismo perfeito.
second hand perfectly aligned.
e segundos perfeitamente alinhados.
and they're touching,
e tocam-se,
"'Untitled' (Perfect Lovers)."
"Sem Título (Amantes Perfeitos)".
faz compreender
battery-operated clocks,
is going to stop before the other.
antes da outra.
e parar antes do outro
to slow down and die before the other
the symmetry of the artwork."
of a contingency plan.
de um plano de contingência.
for the unforeseen,
para o imprevisto,
eles possam ocorrer.
our visual intelligence
a nossa inteligência visual
as contingências,
and the small details
e os pequenos detalhes
under the train,
debaixo do comboio,
in the candlesticks
describes the painting
there's a train coming out of a fireplace,
"há um comboio a sair da lareira,
falar do que não está lá,
to say what isn't there,
about visual intelligence
inteligência visual na Carolina do Norte
that the boat had flipped over
que o barco se tinha virado
por baixo dele.
investigators look for what is apparent,
procuram o que é evidente,
did something different.
which is harder to do.
o que é mais difícil.
tipped flipped over --
at one end of the boat
que estavam numa ponta do barco
but critical observation,
mas crucial observação,
from accidental death to homicide.
de morte acidental para homicídio.
to saying what isn't there
o que não está lá
where they may not be apparent.
ligações visuais que não são evidentes.
de Marie Watt.
connections in everyday objects
escondidas em objectos quotidianos
from all different people
de diferentes pessoas
of the blankets write, on a tag,
escrevessem, numa etiqueta,
the blanket to the family.
had been used for baby blankets,
como cobertores de bebé,
as picnic blankets,
em piqueniques,
that they play.
instruo os novos médicos:
to the outside world.
uma ligação ao mundo lá fora.
in the outside world
tem alguém no mundo lá fora
with that connection in mind.
o melhor tratamento
are connected as humans
relacionam-se como humanos
as doctor and patient.
como médico e paciente.
an overhaul in looking.
revisão geral na observação.
of building a brick wall
de um muro de tijolos construído
can be subtle and yet invaluable.
pode ser subtil e, contudo, muito valiosa.
how it disrupted the symmetry
perturbou a simetria
to the end of the sculpture,
in its entirety,
como um todo,
of the work's disruption on the bricks
da perturbação da obra nos tijolos
for over 15 years,
há mais de 15 anos,
and astonishment --
e perplexidade,
and amazement,
e espanto,
with a critical eye
olhar para a arte com uma visão crítica
of uncharted waters,
no nosso mundo de águas desconhecidas,
of what it is that we observe,
de tudo aquilo que observamos,
em conhecimento mobilizável.
into actionable knowledge.
of tables standing sentinel
de mesas mantendo sentinela
em Nova Orleães,
of post-Katrina floodwaters
de inundações pós-Katrina
to act affirmatively
de agir afirmativamente
the professional spectrum
de todo o espectro profissional
creativity and innovation,
criatividade e inovação,
where they may not be apparent,
onde estas possam não ser evidentes,
and the world writ large
e o mundo inteiro
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Amy Herman - Visual educatorBy showing people how to look closely at painting, sculpture and photography, Amy Herman helps them hone their visual intelligence to recognize the most pertinent and useful information as well as recognize biases that impede decision making.
Why you should listen
Amy Herman is a lawyer and art historian who uses works of art to sharpen observation, analysis and communication skills. She developed her Art of Perception seminar in 2000 to improve medical students' observation and communication skills with their patients when she was the head of education at The Frick Collection in New York City. She subsequently adapted the program for a wide range of professionals and leads sessions internationally for the New York City Police Department, the FBI, the French National Police, the Department of Defense, Interpol, the State Department, Fortune 500 companies, first responders, the military and the intelligence community. In her highly participatory presentation, she demonstrates the relevance of visual literacy across the professional spectrum and how the analysis of works of art affords participants in her program an innovative way to refresh their sense of critical inquiry and reconsider the skills necessary for improved performance and effective leadership. The program has been featured in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, "The CBS Evening News" and Smithsonian Magazine, among others.
Herman holds an AB, a JD and an MA in art history. Her book, Visual Intelligence, was published in May 2016 and was on both the New York Times and Washington Post bestseller lists.
Amy Herman | Speaker | TED.com