
Van Leeuwen defends the relevance of analyzing and understanding what seems trivial and apolitical, such as images, toys, PowerPoint presentations and spaces, all of which shape our worldview and establish the possibilities and limits of social practices and relationships, as well as their role in legitimating (or challenging) the social order. In this interview, Theo van Leeuwen reflects on the role of social semiotics and iconography as research methods for identifying the ideology conveyed by multimodal texts and signifying practices.
