Speaker: Dr. Anna Poletti
Researching Literature Beyond the Book
When they began researching young people’s subcultural life writing in 2002, Anna Poletti also began self-publishing life writing in order to communicate their research to the community of writers whose texts they were studying. This practice of making small scale ephemeral publications to speak to non-scholarly audiences about their work has become a permanent part of their research practice. In this talk, they will outline how the feminist methodology of situated knowledges can be applied in the study of contemporary life writing, and the importance of inventive, and ethical, approaches to research methods in literary studies. They will distribute some of their publications to the audience for discussion.
Image credit: UrbiCamp - designed by Nina Boelsums, Tjeu van Bussel and Piet de Koning, drawing by Hazim Shams
Speaker: Dr. Lenneke Kuijer
Triggering fictions: research and engagement through design
Designing is commonly associated with generating solutions. But design can also be used as a method for research. This function of design has long been acknowledged (notably Cross’ seminal paper on Designerly ways of knowing, 1982), but has only recently become recognized as a valid form of research within NWO. Marrying Research through Design with critical design approaches, Lenneke Kuijer’s VENI project explores possible futures of summer comfort in Dutch households through triggering fictions. While learning about alternative future directions and novel methods for engaging with future everyday life, the fictions – such as Urbicamp depicted here – also function as fruitful means to engage wider audiences in the research.
Speaker: Dr. Dan Hassler-Forest CANCELLED
Science fiction in research: reaching your audience through impactful storytelling
Most people associate science fiction with rocket ships, laser guns, and alien invasions. But the genre also offers a rich archive of imaginative resources that help us imagine sustainable futures. From the utopian post-capitalism of Star Trek to the post-climate crisis wasteland of Mad Max, Dan Hassler-Forest will guide us through the many ways in which the genre has shaped our imagination of the future. We will then reflect on the ways in which he presented his research, and how we can explore creative ways of communicating our research stories to audiences both within and outside our field.
Due to personal circumstances, Dan Hassler-Forest will be unable to speak during this event.