Illustration Research Methods
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Onto another Book for our Literature Review. This time I am looking at ‘Illustration Research Methods’ by Rachel Gannon and Mireille Faucho, published by Bloomsbury.
Now, this book is mainly centred around how to go about applying illustration research, hence the title. It is therefore an asset for any illustrator, student and educator (have a look at Pg16 for an in depth description of ‘The principles of Illustration Practice). That said, the authors delve into various other fields within illustration itself. In my paper I’m looking at various topics — but predominantly the documentation of Maltese illustration and how illustrative themes, ideas and outputs are affected by our rapidly changing landscape.
“[Illustrators]are innately audience and context aware; anticipating variability of reception and response, and thus tailoring their methods of interpretation accordingly. Such concerns are not limited to the latter stages of an illustration project at which point works become public facing. This receptivity and adaptability to context and audience is so deeply ingrained within the ontology of illustration, it is always at play. Ingenuity is a principal expertise of the illustrator and this is evident throughout the methods they use.”
In ‘Illustration as a social practice’, the authors tell us that Illustration is very much engaged in the social world because illustration is made to exist within it. Illustration, unlike fine arts, isn’t just found in Art Galleries, but it is found all around us. Illustration, the authors tell us, is therefore ‘inclusive, people orientated and able to operate in everyday, social life.’
The quotidian-nature of illustration might make it seem less valuable than traditional arts, to some, however, it also makes it more accessible. This accessibility is the key to giving illustration the power of pushing for change. In P62, we read once again about the “Illustrator as Reporter.” (I say again as we’ve seen this subject covered in other books that we have reviewed.) Here, the authors write that illustration has been used to document sociocultural narratives in both historical and contemporary practices by largely depicting current affairs.
“Reportage” “documentary” and “visual journalism”. These are just some of the titles that have been used throughout history to describe this kind of illustration. The authors tell us however, that categorising illustration in this manner can be counterintuitive, as we are not acknowledging the complex and particular interpretations used by illustrators when they are responding to real world events. The authors give various reasons for this; the complexity of ethics when drawing during live events for instance, as well as direct engagement and archival research when working and drawing on location.
The main reason why we shouldn’t use these kind of categorisations however, is that, according to the authors, illustrators can never be truly impartial. The authors refer to the illustrator as a “conduit” through which the understanding of their subject is described. When an illustrator is taking the role of reporter, according to the authors, “truths are subjective and multiple.”
“Rather than claiming to represent reality, illustration’s strength lies in the ability to document outer and inner worlds, multiple perspectives and the immediately visible as well as the unseen.”
Following this, the authors provide a very helpful guide for conducting research a s reporter/Illustrator on Pages 62 and 64. This involves how to conduct fieldwork, dealing with gatekeepers, archiving, investigating etc…
On P92 on the subject of “Me, you and everyone else,” we come across the idea of “positioning”. Positioning refers to the role(position) of the researcher/illustrator within the wider study. The authors encourage us to question what role we occupy when working on a project. Do we consider ourselves an expert or an authority figure, for example? Is there a predetermined stance we hold?
“Posing such questions to ourselves throughout our working processes can alert us to the dangers of ‘othering’; portraying or treating people as different, lesser or unfamiliar to ourselves and what we understand as the norm.”
Here we have to keep in mind that the idea of reporting and documenting is fundamental to show the audience the ‘truth’ of what is happening around us. In P97 the authors challenge us on this perspective. “Illustration doesn’t claim to represent reality,” they write. We have to keep in mind that Illustration is always an interpretative art. This is the case as illustrators do not have access to all the facts surrounding an event.
“Illustration is analytical, diagnostic and investigative. Illustrations explain, reveal and make clear. The role, or concern, of the illustrator therefore, is not to report the facts but instead to communicate so as the viewer understands, empathises or questions.”
So if illustration is not telling the truth, but it’s telling an interpretation of the truth, why is it so important? On P98 the authors write that illustration has an ability to “defamiliarise subject matter” particularly when we are dealing with content that is already familiar. According to the authors, illustration is capable of making an audience see something as if they are seeing it for the first time. Although other visual-media methods can do something similar, their “overabundance” means that they have lost some of their ability to shock.
Here we are of course led to the subject of “Activism.”
“In the broadest sense, activism is described as a concerted effort to incite change, facilitate engagement or voice opinion.”
“To be an activist is to pose a challenge, offer a counter argument or express resistance against a mainstream authority or accepted norm.”
The authors emphasise that comedy is one of the most effective strategies for voicing political critique and for activist illustration. They tell us that humour is an important and powerful tool that has the ability to unite people through “mutual understanding.” Protest posters are known for using humour to get viewers to look at what they are trying to say. It’s hard to ignore something funny, even if you disagree. Once you look, you also tend to reflect.
Another topic that struck me in this book and that wasn’t covered in other books is that of “the meme.” A meme draws together images and text to create meaning. The authors write that a meme is quite similar to conventional illustration.
“In essence, the meme is an isolated narrative that operates through creating comedic visual situations that reference familiar cultural icons, ideas and behaviours.”
Here, the authors write about the pros and cons of having an illustration become a meme. I will write this in point form so it can be more easily digested.
A meme / viral illustration is:
- Entirely dependent on the internet’
- Easily produced.
- No financial costs.
- A powerful tool as it is shared easily and engages en masse
- Could potentially be used for strategic creative activism
- Creator loses control over content and aesthetics once it goes ‘viral’
- It offers no dialogue and is a one-directional form of communication
- Social media bubble — it might only be spread in one’s echo chamber — only shared among own community
And this final point struck a chord because it might be an issue with Maltese activistic illustration. I personally see a lot of ‘Memes’ and political illustrations going round, however there is the very real doubt that they might be going round in circles and in the same echo chambers. How do you get these illustrations out of Facebook and Instagram and to the people? Are satirical cartoons on newspapers enough? Are people engaging with these illustrations? Many questions as always… onto the next!
