Abstract

This paper provides a broad approach to the domain of sensoriality and its relation to the audiovisual by commenting on the interplay between senses, technology, and aesthetics. Starting from the traditional sparse view on the senses – the Aristotelian five – and the long-standing dominance of the logocentric and ocularcentric account of meaning, it argues for a broadening of the whole sensorium and a reconceptualizing of sense-making in terms of multisensoriality and multimodality. It revalorizes the syncretic approach to perception, which is so typical for the worldview of young children, but argues also for a refinement of the perceptual attitude that is characterized by richness and fulness of perception and an experience of immersion. This can apply to our interaction with the natural environment, but it has also found broader applications in the domain of audiovisual media. Particular attention has been drawn to the role of sound in the immersive experience, and the relation between sound and image, as evidenced in films and multimedia