ThoughtGallery.org > “The Ban on Images Goes Digital: Vilém Flusser and German Jewish Thought”

“The Ban on Images Goes Digital: Vilém Flusser and German Jewish Thought”

Join us on Wednesday, March 12 at noon, for a lecture with Ido Ben Harush, a recipient of the IIJS’ New Perspectives in Jewish Studies Award for 2024-2025.

Register to attend the event in-person on this page. If you would like to attend via Zoom, please register on the virtual event page, linked here.

Modern German Jewish thinkers often addressed the question of the role of mediation in understanding the divine and the world through the lens of the Second Commandment’s prohibition on graven images. Philosophers like Moses Mendelssohn and Hermann Cohen approached visual mediation with suspicion, arguing that images could obstruct a true encounter with God and truth, potentially leading to idolatry. This presentation introduces the Prague born media theorist Vilém Flusser (1920-1991) as a Jewish philosopher, and examines his contribution to this discussion. Flusser argues that digital images are different from “traditional images” as they do not reflect or distort reality but generate visual entities entirely independent of the physical world. Understood as such, the digital image is not an intermediary and therefore escapes standard theological problems associated with idolatry and mediation. By positioning Flusser within the German Jewish tradition, this presentation brings to the fore a neglected voice in 20th-century Jewish philosophy and explores the applicability of traditional questions to our digital age.











When: Wed., Mar. 12, 2025 at 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Where: Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies, Columbia University
511 Fayerweather Hall, 1180 Amsterdam Ave.
212-854-2581
Price: Free
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Join us on Wednesday, March 12 at noon, for a lecture with Ido Ben Harush, a recipient of the IIJS’ New Perspectives in Jewish Studies Award for 2024-2025.

Register to attend the event in-person on this page. If you would like to attend via Zoom, please register on the virtual event page, linked here.

Modern German Jewish thinkers often addressed the question of the role of mediation in understanding the divine and the world through the lens of the Second Commandment’s prohibition on graven images. Philosophers like Moses Mendelssohn and Hermann Cohen approached visual mediation with suspicion, arguing that images could obstruct a true encounter with God and truth, potentially leading to idolatry. This presentation introduces the Prague born media theorist Vilém Flusser (1920-1991) as a Jewish philosopher, and examines his contribution to this discussion. Flusser argues that digital images are different from “traditional images” as they do not reflect or distort reality but generate visual entities entirely independent of the physical world. Understood as such, the digital image is not an intermediary and therefore escapes standard theological problems associated with idolatry and mediation. By positioning Flusser within the German Jewish tradition, this presentation brings to the fore a neglected voice in 20th-century Jewish philosophy and explores the applicability of traditional questions to our digital age.

Buy tickets/get more info now