Talk with the curators of the exhibition ‘Let me show you my research: comics as a communication tool’ which includes a collaboration of comics created by students of sports science, students of illustration and researchers all working together.

By showing the work collectively, we are inviting you to explore the ways that images and words can work together, becoming more than the sum of their parts to communicate complex and inter-related themes arising from qualitative research data. From this perspective, we are encouraging engagement within the field of arts-based research, where art (i.e. the comics) isn’t just seen as a way to collect data, but also as a way to represent research findings in a way that is accessible to a wider population, moving beyond the walls of Academia, and encouraging discussion and raised awareness of various topics.

Presenters:

Dr Francesca Cavallerio: Francesca is a Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University with a focus on youth sport and sport injury. Her research area relates to athletes’ welfare, and she is particularly interested in using creative and arts-based methods to represent and communicate research findings to reach a non-academic audience.

Dr Becky Palmer: Becky is an author/illustrator and Lecturer in Illustration at Anglia Ruskin University with particular interest in the relationship between comics and picturebooks. In her research, her interests all centre on visual storytelling. Most recently, she’s been focused on translating qualitative research into creative non-fiction comics, through a research collaboration with Dr Francesca Cavallerio.