Writing with photographs: spoken or implied words turned into photo-text in the spirit of phenomenology

Authors

  • Kate Richardson
  • Rod MacLeod

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11157/sites-vol7iss2id143

Keywords:

photography, phenomenology, symbolic gestures, iconography, photo-text

Abstract

This essay contests that photography is a companionable genre alongside narrative text when phenomenology is the research method. The hypothesis of this paper is that there is a viable link between phenomenological data analysis, and receiving and interpreting information from a digital image. It is believed that photographs produced as symbolic gestures and iconography together with narrative themes can communicate the lived experience by bringing an artistic dimension to the spirit and philosophy of phenomenology

Author Biographies

Kate Richardson

Kate is a registered nurse and senior lecturer at the School of Nursing, Otago Polytechnic. She has been a painter and photographer since the 1970's, and became interested in using photography as phenomenology in 2005/2006 while undertaking her MHSc. She wanted to explore this art form more 'scientifically' for her PhD from 2007 to 2011. Her photography has changed subtly over the last six years with practice and using critical thinking to understand the process from text to photography paper.

Rod MacLeod

Rod is Honorary Clinical Professor and Associate Professor at the Department of General Practice & Primary Health Care, School of Population Studies, University of Auckland.

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Published

22-02-2011

How to Cite

Richardson, K., & MacLeod, R. (2011). Writing with photographs: spoken or implied words turned into photo-text in the spirit of phenomenology. Sites: A Journal of Social Anthropology and Cultural Studies, 7(2), 65–89. https://doi.org/10.11157/sites-vol7iss2id143

Issue

Section

Articles