Guest Speaker: Professor Maja Janmyr, University of Oslo

Title of Talk: Research Comics and Storytelling: The 'Cardboard Camp' Experience

Abstract: Illustrations offer a unique opportunity to uncover the complex social and humanitarian issues that we encounter in our academic research. One powerful narrative image may bring together manifold aspects of a problem. But how can human lives be explored visually? How can illustrations be used as a tool of knowledge production? And how do scholars best partner with artists to tell stories? Using examples from the newly published graphic novel Cardboard Camp: Stories of Sudanese Refugees in Lebanon, Professor Maja Janmyr will discuss the value of visual storytelling in academic research, identify some of the challenges that come with applying this method and discuss how the cross-fertilization of comics and research continues to evolve.