Introduction

Abstract

Our society is often designated as being an “information society”. It could also very well be defined as an “image society”. This is not only because image is a powerful and widely used media of communication, but also because it is an easy, compact and widespread way in which to represent the physical world. When we think about it, it is very surprising indeed (and maybe frightening) to realize just how much images are omni-present in our lives, and how much we rely upon them: just have a glance at the patchwork presented in Figure 1.1.