The PHOTO OP series — to which SEMIOVOX has invited our semiotician colleagues from around the world to contribute — analyzes photos that we’ve snapped while “off the job.”

Book covers are great fun to decode. A single image needs to promise an enthralling story, and leave people wanting more. A bookshop is, in a sense, like an art gallery, with hundreds of pieces to explore. 

Motion Sickness by Lynne Tillman. The feeling of motion sickness is conveyed by the bilious green of the dress and the dizzying neon yellow text on white, edges bleeding onto the image. The figure reclines, perhaps sick — but in combination with the vintage luxury, their body language suggests a more melancholy malaise.

Books about queer resistance are grouped together, three of them using pink as a colour representing protest. White spaces are struck through, like ‘no access’ signs. Occult/gothic typography hints at the superstitious othering of the past (and present), reclaimed by queer communities.

Your Driver is Waiting by Priya Guns. A visual reference to Taxi Driver with a millennial-rage twist. Rage is communicated by an upside-down smiley face sticker/emoji, the feminist protest-pink background, and the flaming air freshener — which also implies modern rage-inducing concerns like climate change and wildfires. This is a millennial on the brink.

PHOTO OP: Mariane Cara (Brazil) on LA LUCHA CONTINUA | Aiyana Gunjan (India) on YAMRAJ | Greg Rowland (England) on I ❤️ FOOD | Gabriela Pedranti (Spain) on NOT SO TRIVIAL | Biba Allarakia (Saudi Arabia) on ALL THAT GLITTERS | Brian Khumalo (South Africa) on A LOST MEMORY | Becks Collins (England) on A MILLENNIAL ON THE BRINK | Samuel Grange (France) on SLOW DOWN | Rachel Lawes (England) on DESKTOP COLLECTIONS | Marie Lena Tupot (USA) on BOX OFFICE | Sónia Marques (Portugal) on SWISS-NESS | Serdar Paktin (Turkey / England) on BOTTLE SERVICE | Stefania Gogna (Italy) on OPEN-AIR MUSEUM | Charles Leech (Canada) on IS IT IRONIC? | Kishore Budha (England) on DOWN THE TUBE | Josh Glenn (USA) on JOINED AT THE DIP | Mark Lemon (England) on SHOP LOCAL | William Liu (China) on SWAN SONG | Malcolm Evans (Wales) on CHOCOCRACK | Paulina Goch-Kenawy (Poland) on POLAND’S NEW (HI)STORY | Adelina Vaca (Mexico) on WHAT’S YOUR POISON? | Natasha Delliston (England) on NATURE BATHING | Ramona Lyons (USA) on TBD | Victoria Gerstman (England) on TBD | Ximena Tobi (Argentina) on TBD.

Also see these international semio series: COVID CODES | SEMIO OBJECTS | MAKING SENSE | COLOR CODEX | DECODER | CASE FILE