The visual system receives a series of fluctuating light patterns on the retina, yet visual perception is strikingly different from this unorganized and ambiguous input. Thus visual processes must organize the input into coherent units, or objects, and segregate them from others. These processes, collectively called perceptual organization, are fundamental to our ability to perceive and interact with objects in the world. Nevertheless, they are not yet understood, perhaps because serial, hierarchical assumptions that were long held impeded progress. In a series of experiments, this dissertation investigated the mechanisms that contribute to perceptual organization and ultimately to our ability to perceive objects. A new hypothesis is that during the course of object assignment potential objects on either side of a border are accessed on a fast pass of processing and engage in inhibitory competition for object status; the winner is perceived as the object and the loser is suppressed, leading that region to be seen as part of the shapeless background. Previous research suggested that at least shape level representations are accessed on the fast pass of processing before object assignment. In the first series of experiments (Chapter 1), we found that meaning (semantics) is also accessed on the fast pass of processing for regions that are ultimately perceived as shapeless grounds. This finding contradicts traditional feed-forward theories of perception that assumed that meaning is accessed only for figures after object assignment. The experiments in Chapter 2 examine activity in the alpha band of the EEG, which has been used as an index of inhibition. More alpha activity was observed when participants viewed stimuli designed such that there was more competition for figural status from the region ultimately perceived as the ground. The results support the proposal that inhibitory competition occurs during the course of object perception, and these results are the first online measure of competition during figure assignment. The final series of experiments (Chapter 3) investigated how quickly saccadic behaviors that required perceptual organization can be initiated. The experiments show that participants can initiate saccades that are based on perceptual organization approximately 200 ms after stimulus onset, much faster than was assumed on feed-forward models of perception. Collectively, these experiment support models of object perception that involve the mutual interaction and competition of objects properties via feedforward and iterative feedback processing, and the eventual suppression of the losing ground regions before object assignment.

Figure-ground perception can be modeled as a competitive process with mutual inhibition between shape properties on opposite sides of an edge. This dissertation reports brain-based evidence that such competitive inhibition can be induced by access to preexisting object memory representations during figure assignment. Silhouette stimuli were used in which the balance of properties along an edge biased the inner, bounded, region to be seen as a novel figure. Experimental silhouettes (EXP) suggested familiar objects on their outside edges, which nonetheless appeared as shapeless grounds. Control silhouettes (CON) suggested novel shapes on the outside.In an initial task, human observers categorized masked EXP and CON silhouettes (175 ms exposure) as "novel" versus a third group of silhouettes depicting "familiar" objects on the inside. Signal detection measures verified that observers were unconscious of the familiar shapes within the EXP stimuli. Across three experiments, novel categorizations were highly accurate with shorter RTs for EXP than CON. Event-related potential (ERP) indices of observers' brain activity (Experiments 2 and 3) revealed a Late Potential (~300 ms) to be less positive for EXP than CON, a reduction in neural activity consistent with the presence of greater competitive inhibition for EXP stimuli. After controlling for stimulus confounds (Experiment 3), the P1 ERP (~100 ms) was larger for EXP than CON conditions, perhaps reflecting unconscious access to object memories.In a second task, observers were informed about familiar shapes suggested on the outsides of the EXP silhouettes before viewing masked (Experiments 1 and 2) or unmasked (Experiment 3) EXP and CON silhouettes to report whether they saw familiar shapes on the outside. Experiment 3 observers were more accurate to categorize CON vs. EXP stimuli as novel vs. familiar, with shorter RTs for EXP than CON. Task 2 N170 ERPs (~170 ms) were larger for EXP than CON in Experiments 2 and 3, reflecting the conscious perception of familiar shape in the outsides of EXP silhouettes. LP magnitudes were greater for CON than EXP, although ERP polarity was dependent on the presence/absence of a mask. Task 2 LPs may reflect competitive inhibition or longer processing times for CON stimuli.

On reading the biblical version of the Creation and Fall of Adam and Eve (Genesis ii-iii) we find that the presentation lends itself to two possible interpretations: on the one hand, we may regard the narrative as being a mere history of two lives; or, what is more likely, we may see in the report an attempt to explain the present state of the World through an allegorical account of the entrance of evil into the mind of Man and so into the Macrocosm. [...]

This thesis examines the notion of a 'third space'. 'Third space' is a way to examine the question of culture in a time marked by large epistemic, political and representational shifts. Recent theorization of 'third space' often locates this as a cultural 'in-between' or field of liminality, beginning with the polarities of hierarchical and binary dualisms. The body, as one half of dualistic thought and practice, remains conspicuously absent from concepts of 'third space' and its activities. A series of dynamic modes of engagement, in which embodiment figures centrally, constitutes 'third space' in this theorization of it. Rather, however, than approach the articulation of a 'third space' solely through academic and literary texts, its primary 'sources' of 'information' to date, photographic imagery is proposed as a means to access 'third space'. The photographic, through its mediation of "vision," provides visual 'clues' by which to approach the "subjects" and "objects" of 'third space'. A trialectical relation of Visuality, Embodied Inter(ob)subjectivity and Space therefore characterizes a feminist approach to, and conceptualization of, 'third space'. An interpretative analysis of the contemporary photographic practices of Genevieve Cadieux, Marlene Creates, and Sylvie Readman contributes to an understanding of the significance of a notion of 'third space'.

Ce mémoire propose d'examiner les figures archétypales féminines dans quatre romans récents afin d'en vérifier la prégnance dans des oeuvres issues d'écrivaines québécoises. Plus précisément, il s'agit de vérifier si la pureté de la triade archétypale "vierge-mère-putain" a toujours cours sur l'horizon actuel, que l'on dit marqué par l'hétérogénéité. Mobilisant un cadre théorique posant l'identité comme étant construite -- notamment par la culture, à travers le processus de socialisation --, l'étude se déploie en trois temps principaux. Le premier chapitre consiste en une analyse des profils sémantiques des personnages féminins en tenant compte des caractéristiques attribuées à chacun des personnages, à leurs discours et à leurs actions. Le second chapitre relève les éléments relatifs à la socialisation des protagonistes en lien avec les différentes stratégies narratives déployées par les auteures. La place occupée par la religion dans les récits est également étudiée. Enfin, le troisième chapitre explore les lieux : à travers ceux-ci, c'est la "fonction" du personnage qui est surtout questionnée.

Open Studio: A Phase in Six Years of my Art Education is a true-to-scale reproduction of my graduate studio space, populated by a meticulously constructed life-size, wax self-portrait. Evoking Romantic imagery of the artist in the studio, the uncanniness of the wax figure creates an experience of the type that Mike Kelley has described as “banal [and] emptied of magic.” The figure’s eyes are closed and his gesture is as vulnerable as it is defensive. Almost teetering, but balanced within the space, the work poetically falls apart upon close inspection and reveals a narrative that’s open to interpretation.

The primary objective of this creative project was the exploration of cultural and self identity and the painting techniques used for their creation. The paintings are an attempt to portray through the use of the human figure and symbolic elements to communicate my personal struggle relating to events in my past, present, and future. In these three large paintings I have explored an approach reminiscent to German Expressionism style along with more contemporary motifs which are derived from my research and past experiences in painting at Ball State University. It was very important for me to spend time researching artist involved in the German expressionist movement, because they have been an integral part of reshaping the way I approach art. This body of work required a variety of traditional oil painting techniques including: canvas construction, under painting, stumbling, and glazing. / Department of Art

The research builds on and contributes to the representation in landscape, specifically the imaging of active landscapes. Current representational methodologies in landscape architecture have already defined various regimes for the mapping of landscapes. Most of these operate by portraying existing conditions that prioritize visual and formal qualities, displacing objects from their wider context and creating neutral artificialities. Although the discourse of representation has already emphasized the need for appropriate methodologies that engage more closely with the landscape, there has not been an examination and production of techniques that not only privilege the object but also encourage the imaginative conception of experiential phenomena unfolding over time. A convention such as the figure-ground plan is an idealized and dominant technique that expresses an existing condition, without references to evolution or change. This research provides additional insight into the depiction of events that develop over time by reconceptualising

Thesis (M.T.S.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 1989. / Vita. Bibliography: leaves 56-60.

Thesis (M.F.A.)--Rochester Institute of Technology, 1994. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 36).