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A collection of original articles that explore social aspects of the phenomenon of icon. Having experienced the benefits and realized the limitations of so called ´linguistic turn´, sociology has recently acknowledged a need to further expand its horizons.

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Materiality and Meaning in Social Life: Toward an Iconic Turn in Cultural Sociology; D.Bartmanski & J.Alexander PART I Representation, Presentation, Presence: Tracing the Homo Pictor; G.Boehm Iconic Power and Performance: the Role of the Critic; J.Alexander PART II Inconspicuous Revolutions of 1989. Culture and Contingency in The Making of Political Icons; D.Bartmanski The Making of Humanitarian Visual Icons. On the 1921-1923 Russian Famine as Foundational Event; F.Kurasawa Seeing Tragedy in the News Images of September 11; W.Bowler The Emergence of Iconic Depth. Secular Icons in a Comparative Perspective; W.Binder PART III Shifting Extremism: On the Political Iconology in Post-socialist Serbia; D.Suber & S.Karamanic The Visualization of Uncertainty: HIV Statistics in Public Media; V.Rauer How To Make an Iconic Commodity: The Case of Penfolds´ Grange Wine; I.Woodward & D.Ellison Becoming Iconic. The Cases of Woodstock and Bayreuth; P.Smith PART IV Body and Image; H.Belting Iconic Difference and Seduction; B.Giesen Iconic Rituals. Towards a Social Theory of Encountering Images; J.Sonnevend Visible Meanings; P.Sztompka Afterword; B.Giesen

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´Iconic Power is the strongest theoretical statement to yet come out of the ´Strong Program´ in Cultural Sociology. Arguably, more than any other trope, including those of ritual and performance, the concept of ´iconicity´ promises to break free of the economistic, linguistic and other kinds of reductionisms that plague the cultural sciences. This fine volume contains both theoretical expositions on how pictorial icons do their cultural work, as well as applied analyses of phenomena such as 9/11, images of famines, Woodstock and Bayreuth as ´iconic´ events, expensive Australian red wines and the political iconography of Post-Communist Eastern Europe. If cultural sociology is to have a vibrant future and not repeat the mistakes of the past then in Iconic Power: Materiality and Meaning in Social Life practitioners have a handbook on how to approach the distinctive character of the visual and other non-discursive symbols.´ - Eduardo de la Fuente, Sociology, Flinders University; author of Twentieth Century Music and the Question of Modernity

´Ranging in its coverage from the events of 9/11 to images of HIV, and from the revolutions of 1989 to cult wines, this book systematically unpacks the tremendous importance of icons in social life. Both a striking contribution to visual sociology, and a powerful manifesto for new directions in cultural sociology, Iconic Power is fascinating reading for everyone interested in the seductive potency of iconography.´ - David Inglis, Head of Department, Department of Sociology, University of Aberdeen

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