"The technical image marks an enormous expansion of visual scope. The imaging devices and systems have brought about a worldwide explosion of visual culture.(...)The social use of the image is undergoing the process of profound chance. Technical images have a purpose that goes beyond mere represantation - static images are no longer just autonomous but have a definite function. The triumph of the technical image lies in the fact that it can be used in far more ways than those to which pictures have traditionally been put.(...)The image has become part of the service industries, part of the service society. This is what was meant when we spoke at the outset about a new social history of the image...."
Peter Weibel (head of ZKM) Introduction for an interdisciplinary symposium: "The Role of Pictures in Society. Nnew Ways of Using Images." http://on1.zkm.de/zkm/stories/storyReader$4928