<P> The visual cortex of the brain is a part of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information . It is located in the occipital lobe in the back of the head . </P> <P> Visual information coming from the eye goes through the lateral geniculate nucleus in the thalamus and then reaches the visual cortex . The part of the visual cortex that receives the sensory inputs from the thalamus is the primary visual cortex, also known as visual area 1 (V1), and the striate cortex . The extrastriate areas consist of visual areas 2 (V2), 3 (V3), 4 (V4), and 5 (V5). </P> <P> Both hemispheres of the brain contain a visual cortex; the visual cortex in the left hemisphere receives signals from the right visual field, and the visual cortex in the right hemisphere receives signals from the left visual field . </P> <P> The primary visual cortex (V1) is located in and around the calcarine fissure in the occipital lobe . Each hemisphere's V1 receives information directly from its ipsilateral lateral geniculate nucleus that receives signals from the contralateral visual hemifield . </P>

The visual cortex on the right hemisphere receives visual information from the