Sketch 6 _ response to Gabriel Grill's post _ Meredith Sattler
Gabriel, your post inspires me to consider ways of thinking through your 'real time' mapping example, utilizing Latour's Inscriptions [definitely old school...but I think there's territory here to be further developed, particularly as it relates to mapping]. Perhaps, combined with his related concepts of Centers of Calculation, Cycles of Accumulation, and Inscription Devices, particularly as they interface with postcolonial studies. Thinking here [of course] of abstraction through scalar shift and decontextualization, which are necessary components of mapping. Your 'real time' example brings temporal accuracy into the mix as well. Additionally, many issues surrounding identification, classification, and ultimately power.
I'm curious how widely accessible the image/database/interface is that you show; is it just for the company factories identified on the map, or do others also hae access, such as government, labor unions, general publics? The intended and unintended audiences seem critical here to understanding how the image might be interpreted and used [recontextualized, in a sense].
Perhaps this idea of specific audience 'recontextualization' could be productive? In a sense, it reverses Latour's process of generation of a scientific fact through inscription production, which strips the object of its context, while simultaneously targeting a very specific audience who will likely read the inscription[s] in very consistent ways, through highly codified epistemologies and ontologies. In other words, it might reverse/complicate the reductionist exercise of mapping your authors performed. In your example, different audiences might perform their own diverse readings, through forms of interpretive flexibility [both through the generative technology itself, and, taking some liberties here, epistemologically, socially, etc.], possibly resulting in a multiplicity of reconsitituted contextualizations, or even contemporary versions of Autoethnographies.
I'm curious to understand more about how you're thinking about this image.
Inscriptions: Latour + Woolgar Laboratory Life,
Centers of Calculation, Accumulation, etc.: Latour Science in Action, Latour "Visualization and Cognition: Drawing things Together", Burnett Masters of All They Surveyed, Miller + Reill Visions of Empire
Interpretive Flexibility: Pinch + Bijker The Social Construction of Technological Systems
Autoethnographies: Pratt Imperial Eyes
Yesmar Oyarzun's Sketch 7
Hi Yesmar! Your sketch 7 resonated with me a lot. I think you identify a crucial aspect of the question of 'STS beyond academia,' which is, what if the 'beyond' that we're invested in is still within or via other academic or professional realms? I struggled in my sketch with figuring out who my audience might be, and I'm realizing that that was not because I wasn't sure who I wanted to speak to, but because they didn't feel "beyond" enough. I also really liked what you said about not only thinking about dermatologists but WITH them as well. I would love to hear more about your experiences/plans with publishing with dermatologists, since I've been trying to sort out similar possibilities in my research too.
Hi Mike, the image really does work for a book cover! There would be so many options to colour pic out of the image for the text. What colour would you imagine the text to be if picked from your cover?
If you had to go with a press that gives you pre-designed book covers like the Pivot range, what colours and patterns would you go for, what 3-4 keywords would help you to make that decision? Here are some already published: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot
Hi Caroline, you have one image that mentions data a lot.
If you were to make one of these a book cover say for MIT Press, in order which one would you choose? What 2-3 lines of text would you give the designer to interpret the image into the main parts of a bookcover, could you start to collect images that might begin a moodboard for inspiration?
If you had to go with a press that gives you pre-designed book covers like the Pivot range, what colours and patterns would you go for and why? What 3-4 keywords would help you to make that decision? Here are some already published: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot
Hi Alexandra, three very different images that would inspire a book cover. They are images I could imagine inside a book, but not yet the bookcover. So, What 2-3 lines of text would you give the designer to interpret the images as inspiration to design? This often happens for presses that enable you to choose your own covers, see many of the covers for Duke University Press or MIT Press, or Mattering Press.
If you had to go with a press that gives you pre-designed book covers like the Pivot range, what colours and patterns would you go for, what 3-4 keywords would help you to make that decision? Here are some already published: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot
Hi Linda, all your images could be used as bookcovers. If you were to make one of these a book cover say for MIT Press, in order which one would you choose? What 2-3 lines of text would you give the designer to interpret the image into the main parts of a bookcover, i.e. which image, with what style of typography (handwritten - look at the designs of Stefan Sagmeister, helvetica or something else) what colour would the text be in complement or in contrast to the image?
If you had to go with a press that gives you pre-designed book covers like the Pivot range, what colours and patterns would you go for, what 3-4 keywords would help you to make that decision? Here are some already published: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot
Hi Jessica,
You chose images that tell a story, that lead the viewer in like a detective trying to solve a mystery. I'm viewing your images through the lens of a designer given the task of designing your book cover from these inspirational images. The second image, of a map with little iconic images of logs and petrochemicals (I think), reminds me of the RSA Animate series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc
If say, you're book was chosen by a press that gives you limited pre-made patterns and colours to work with, what shapes and colours might you glean from your chosen images, or to back to your research to images taht don't necessarily tell a story but symbolise and summarise the aspect of your research project?
Have a look at the Pivot books by Palgrave Macmillan for their existing book covers to see what I mean: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot? While shapes come from the middle illustrative image, what about colour? Two of your images show cars. Are cars really important in your project or is the location and the geographic spaces that your images describe. You also chose images that do not contain people. You might want to look at Laura Watt's book The Orkney Sagas, her photographs in the book do not show people at all, and that was purposeful, but there are illustrations. You can read a review of the book here on Backchannels, the 4S Blog: https://www.4sonline.org/blog/post/why_feminist_figurations_matter_in_energy_futures
If say you were publishing for MIT Press, what short 2-3 lines of text might you give to a designer given the commission of your book cover? What typographic style would you want, what colours might complement the text and imagery? How might they work together? Would collecting project/research imagery as a moodboard help you in the future were you to be heading to publish this research as a book?
Hi Sofie,
You chose a range of images by artists involving sculpture and drawing, but you also chose a series of code. The latter may be the inspiration for a book cover, and I think would inspire a designer given that brief.
If say, you're book was chosen by a press that gives you limited pre-made patterns and colours to work with, what shapes and colours might you glean from your chosen images? Have a look at the Pivot books by Palgrave Macmillan for their existing book covers to see what I mean: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot? While your shapes may be indicated for you in the last image, what about colour?
If say you were publishing for MIT Press, what short 2-3 lines of text might you give to a designer given the commission of your book cover, so what typographic style would you want, what colours might complement the text and imagery? How might they work together? Would collecting project/research imagery as a moodboard help you in the future were you to get there?
Hi Hannah,
You chose a range of images involving a singular portrait of a data thugger, is that correct pronoun? You also chose what is called in design, an icon.
I wonder, are these images more of a "moodboard", or a collection of "ephemeral objects" and imagery that might inspire a book cover? If say, you're book was chosen by a press that gives you limited pre-made patterns and colours to work with, what shapes and colours might you glean from your chosen images? Have a look at the Pivot books by Palgrave Macmillan for their existing book covers to see what I mean: https://www.palgrave.com/gp/campaigns/palgrave-pivot? If you had tlo choose from the existing colours and covers what would you choose? What shapes and colours would be the essence of your research ideas and arguments?
Hi Efe,
You chose affectual images involving group and singular portraits of people. They are media images for journalism and in design terms, could be useful inside a book, with the great captions that you have given them.
I wonder, are these images more of a "moodboard", or a collection of "ephemeral objects" and imagery that might inspire a book cover? If say, you're book was chosen by a press that gives you limited pre-made patterns and colours to work with, what shapes and colours might you glean from your chosen images? Have a look at the Pivot books for their existing book covers to see what I mean?