journal of visual culture Editorial: Acts of Translation

Today translation is gaining ground as a crucial trope, idea, concept, metaphor and mode of interpretation within discussions of international visual and cultural practices. Art historians, cultural and literary critics, philosophers and psychoanalysts are turning to modern and contemporary theories of translation in order to consider visual, historical, social and subjective transformations. This issue of the journal of visual culture situates itself within this context and offers new elements to the emerging debate. The figure of translation has a long history in the fields of theology, philosophy, literary studies and critical theory. From its early theological history, the study of translation produced an understanding of language as polyvalent. Based on the crossing of boundaries, this polyvalency was coupled with a recognition of language as polysemous. Together, these aspects of translation have led to the flourishing of divergent theories within various fields of study. Much of this work seeks to exploit the potential o