Scenerywhat

Scenerywhat is a term used in visual culture and media studies to question and analyze the construction and reception of landscapes as scenery in images, films, and tourism rhetoric. The term signals a focus on what qualifies as scenery, who defines it, and how viewers interpret landscapes in different contexts.

Origins and usage: The term emerged in critical discussions of landscape representation in the early 21st century, particularly in analyses of travel photography, social media, and film. It is not a formal discipline but a concept used to frame inquiries into the production of scenery, rather than merely depicting it.

Conceptual scope: Scenerywhat treats scenery as a social artifact shaped by editors, photographers, marketers, and audiences. It highlights performativity, curation, and the commodification of landscapes, as well as the ethical and ecological implications of landscape imagery.

Characteristics: It often involves curated, iconic views, tropes of the sublime, and the "always-on" display of landscapes in digital feeds. It emphasizes context, such as location, cultural significance, and the relationship between viewer and place.

Applications: In teaching and research, scenerywhat guides analyses of travel writing, Instagram and other platforms, and cinema to reveal how landscapes function as narrative devices and marketable assets.

Critiques: Critics argue that scenerywhat can overlook lived experience, local knowledge, and environmental impact, encouraging superficial engagement with place.

See also: Landscape, Visual culture, Tourist gaze, Landscape photography, Media studies.