Here’s how an image adds value 🖼

The minds of medieval monks must have been vibrant, because their surroundings certainly weren’t. 

 

It was in cold, candlelit monasteries that they spent long hours “illuminating” their religious texts by adding beautiful imagery.

 

From there come the questions: Why go through all the effort? What purpose did illuminated manuscripts serve? Surely everything someone might need to know can be written. 

 

The images in these manuscripts helped summarize and explain the message of these religious texts in a time when illiteracy was common (even amongst rulers).

 

A byproduct of this beautification was the preservation of these books, overriding any whims that the less literate rulers of the time may have had. They are, in fact, some of the most common surviving items from that period.

As much as we would like to convey everything through words alone, they are often suited to be complemented by images.

 

Even now, in the centuries after the printing press, with books not only being accessible, but affordable, illustrations serve much of the same purposes:

 

Practical

 

• They summarize your message, or tell a story.
• They convey your message to audiences who prefer a visual medium.

 

Aesthetic

 

• They grab the attention of your reader.
• Plus, they enhance the perceived value of your message.

 

Some images lean into the practical benefits. Take your flowchart or your venn diagram—these are imagery that were conceived for their high degree of practicality. Some, like a featured image in a blog may only serve to capture attention.

 

(Is it possible to do both? It’s certainly a worthy challenge.)

 

To say a picture is worth a thousand words is a cliche, I know, but there is no better way to summarize the advantages that images provide to texts (without using a picture). Any well executed image serves a purpose.

 

See you next time,

Mukundan