1
Maurizio Rontani
M.A. in Communication for Development
Malmö University
Final Project Work, June 2012
Supervisor: Anders Høg Hansen
Patrimonito: a visual storytelling of World
Heritage from and for children
2 Table of Contents
ABSTRACT 3
I. INTRODUCTION 4
Preserving heritage globally. Changing lives locally 4 Patrimonito´s World Heritage Adventures Storyboard Competition 2010/2011 5
Research questions 8
II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 9
Visual storytelling and representations 10
Storytelling and cultural heritage 12
Cultural Heritage 14
UNESCO and the World Heritage 16
Heritage and Identity 18
Heritage Tourism 20
A Communication for Development perspective 22
III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 24
Visual Methods 27
Semiotics and Transmedia Storytelling 31
Semiotics of Comics 32
IV. ANALYSIS 36
V. RESEARCH FINDINGS 42
VI. FINAL REMARKS 45
REFERENCES 47
3
ABSTRACT
This is a brief research investigating issues such as world heritage and sustainable development in their existing links with youth and local communities, tourism and identity. Some heritage related narratives created by youngsters worldwide are considered.
Connections among education, participation and heritage preservation, in the framework of a communication for development perspective, are investigated. Specifically, winning storyboards of a UNESCO Patrimonito competition are analyzed. The analysis on the collected media texts was conducted using a qualitative approach, including semiotics and visual methods.
The findings emerged from the study made clearer the researched topic and allowed to formulate some final recommendations for further studies on the subject.
4
I. INTRODUCTION
Preservation of cultural heritage sites and landscapes is deeply embedded in modernity and their value for both national economy and national identity is usually well understood in developed countries. However, to carry on necessary preservation can be difficult due to lack of public resources as well as mismanagement of allocated finances. Nowadays, national economies and rising shortages in public finances can hinder national ministries of culture to take care of smaller and secondary sites. Nevertheless there is a living non-profit sector1 that plays a relevant role in this field taking care of forgotten, but still relevant, heritage sites.
Thanks mainly to the work of UNESCO in the last 60 years the importance of this theme has been widespread worldwide, including developing countries. Main endangered heritage sites have been followed carefully and inserted in watch-lists to advocate their preservation for future generations. Such rising attention on specific heritage sites led also to international development projects involving their preservation that contributed in boosting local tourism industries.
Preserving heritage globally. Changing lives locally
Partnerships among governments, international organizations, NGOs and the private sector exist to enhance cultural heritage and development. Several NGOs and foundations from developed countries – such as the Global Heritage Fund (GHF, 2012b), or Cultural Heritage without Borders (CHWB, 2012) – advocate the need to save our heritage globally and especially significant and endangered cultural heritage sites in developing countries. It can be argued, indeed, that heritage protection and sustainable tourism can be a viable road to alleviate poverty and foster local economic development in the developing world (GHF, 2012a). And while “unmanaged tourism can damage heritage sites, and high-profile sites often suffer the most … Managing the numbers of tourists and traffic flow … minimizes the negative impact of visitors on
1
In Italy, for example, it exists FAI, the Italian Environment Fund (FAI, 2012), a large national trust that buys, restores and preserves, local houses, villas and cultural sites, relevant for the common heritage but kept in bad conditions. Once a year it grants free access to its sites as a way to raise awareness on the importance of preserving cultural heritage.
5 heritage sites and the surrounding environment, but also produces income and jobs for local communities” (WMF, 2012).
These development themes can be considered actual glocal phenomena as well summarized by GHF's motto „Preserving heritage globally. Changing lives locally‟ (GHF, 2012b). A charming NGO‟s slogan that contributed to arouse my interest concerning preservation of glocal heritage and related development issues, leading me to research on narratives linked to heritage places.
Broadly speaking, this research investigates heritage preservation as a force supporting social change. Taking into considerations how communities, especially the youth, living around World Heritage sites – including those endangered – are influenced by global cultural heritage and patrimony preservation. Indeed, preservation of common heritage usually happens in partnership with local populations and it yields socio-economic benefits as well as a non-economic impact on education and identity.
Patrimonito´s World Heritage Adventures Storyboard Competition 2010/2011
At the beginning of my research I wanted to focus on several narratives created through interviews, photographs, drawings and exhibitions, to explore the changes, challenges, conflicts and contradictions involved in the process of preserving a cultural heritage site in a developing country. Investigating the role of communities living in and around a heritage site, and how much relevance is given to themes such as visiting responsibly and balancing heritage and environment preservation with responsible local economic development. Including also how restoration and preservation can both shape and define relationships among social groups, as well as the sense of ownership and belonging. Thus, analyzing texts through which their authors try to build awareness on heritage preservation in different stakeholders: from children, as future citizens, to adults; from governments to private multinational companies2.
2
Corporations may be then pushed to invest into heritage preservation or sustainable tourism promotion as a form of corporate social responsibility (WMF, 2012).
6 However, such research scope was too broad for this kind of study and in the end I decided to focus my analysis on the winning contributions of the latest UNESCO Patrimonito international competition. Indeed, as a way to contribute in educating young people to preserve both local and global heritage, in order to create a new episode of the Patrimonito‟s animated series, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre organized for 2010/2011 an international contest (UNESCO, 2010c). Launched in June 2010, this thematic competition among teenagers aimed at raising awareness about the challenges faced by UNESCO World Heritage sites (UNESCO, 2012b).
Such recent initiative used a visual participatory tool to engage stakeholders, trying to trigger social change. Young people worldwide could participate through the creation of storyboards about World Heritage sites and their links with communities, sustainable tourism, sustainable development and biodiversity (UNESCO, 2010a). Thus, it addressed issues of concern for local people but at the same time it emphasized the importance of fostering the use of creative and problem-solving skills at the local level as collaborative efforts to safeguard the world‟s cultural heritage.
Since 2002, in the framework of the UNESCO World Heritage Education Programme, several Patrimonito competitions (UNESCO, 2006) have been organized (UNESCO, 2008), and a new one is currently ongoing for the celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention (UNESCO, 2012a). But they were related to a single theme or organized only in one or a few countries, while the competition organized in 2010/2011 was worldwide (UNESCO, 2010c). All Patrimonito activities are framed under the Education and Training section of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention (UNESCO, 2002) and they incorporate one of its key messages: „World Heritage Education = Preservation‟ (UNESCO, 2010b). It is claimed, indeed, that this competition “allows young people in schools and youth organizations to build critical thinking skills about heritage conservation in their own country as well as to transmit their message to their peers around the world” (UNESCO, 2010c).
My main argumentation is that UNESCO with this activity enhanced a participatory approach, fostering local dialogue on sensitive development issues. This initiative of communication for development (ComDev), in fact, can help to provide more
7 information to children, including those living in and around endangered sites, about what could happen to their communities in the future if they do not take action.
It can be suggested that it empowered young participants, between 12 and 18 years old (UNESCO, 2010a), by providing a tool to express themselves and tell their story related to one of the chosen theme. To propose fresh ideas, for example on how to balance preserving heritage for future generations with meeting current human needs; or just to inspire others, like while describing their role “in preserving and conserving the site and finding ways to overcome challenges it faces” (UNESCO, 2012a).
Through participation in the Patrimonito initiatives by UNESCO the youth can improve their understanding of the implications related to world heritage preservation and enhance behavioral change within their local communities. Thus, it can be argued that with this kind of activity UNESCO included a specific communication for development approach within its world heritage discourse. Focusing on participation of local stakeholders and successfully crossing local languages and cultural contexts through the use of visual images and drawings.
Patrimonito involves a participatory action, as the drawings, and the use of the Internet to initiate and carry on a dialogue with the people. Moreover, it is likely that further discussion take place at the local level. Therefore, there are several elements of a bottom-up approach. Such as local participation, that can be considered essential to create awareness about sensitive topics. And the flow of information involved in the programme that is not linear but coming from a dialogue and obtained through stakeholders‟ participation and discussion.
Through a ComDev approach local communities can be reached with alternative communication tools and initiatives that can enhance bottom-up thinking and action. Thus, in this way while raising awareness UNESCO can foster actual change in glocal behavior when dealing with preservation of world heritage sites. Empowering people in developing countries to take decisions that can benefit their everyday lives, but also contributing to more sustainable standards of living in developed nations.
8 Research questions
There are several research questions that guided this study and its theoretical framework discussed in the following chapter. Briefly:
- Within a specific communication initiative like the Patrimonito competition 2010/11, which can be considered a participative communication tool to get youth engaged in heritage preservation, did UNESCO actually include a strategic communication for development approach?
- How is the value of a World Heritage site perceived and represented by children as community members and what can stories told by these youngsters about World Heritage sites tell about the links between heritage, tourism and identity?
As explained in the following chapters, I chose to use semiotics and visual methods for the analysis of the visual portrayal of protected heritage in the storyboards drawn by children. They include works from children living in or near endangered heritage sites and in the near future they could be transformed into animated film episodes of the Patrimonito‟s Adventure series (UNESCO, 2010a).
Unfortunately, even if the subject of my study was decided during winter 2011 I had to wait several months before the necessary corpus of data became publically available on the UNESCO website. Indeed, the winning storyboards of the Patrimonito competition came out only in late spring 2011 and thus I had to postpone not only the analysis but also the finalization of this research that was due in the same period. A solution in order to avoid this postponement would have been to switch my focus either on other aspects of the competition or to another relevant case related to the researched theme.
The reading of multiple books and articles to create a necessary theoretical framework and choose an appropriate methodology took several months. Afterwards the analysis conducted on the collected data led to several findings and recommendations for further studies. I regret that due to budget and time constraints it was not possible neither to conduct some qualitative interviews to get insights from involved children, nor to retrieve material from news articles, blogs and forums discussing these issues.
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II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
“We have many ways of telling a story -
through words, plays, movies, etc. One way that is particularly descriptive, visually rich in information, easily understood, and interesting to view is the storyboard”
(Sova & Sova, 2006, p. 1)
The researched Patrimonito initiative is based on visual images and narrative storytelling. On one hand it can be considered a strategy to use simple visualizations to depict relevant issues related to world heritage as a way to popularize them into something similar to viewers‟ everyday experience. On the other hand it is an example of creative storytelling and participation since children, whose voices are often absent from the policy making process, can express their point of view on specific issues through their drawings. There is a focus on disseminating information mainly through visual images as an alternative way of communicating a relevant topic, with the aim of a broader understanding of the issues.
The drawings of storyboards by children in the UNESCO competition can be considered like a genre of visual storytelling, forging unpredictable lines of cross-cultural identification. In this initiative world heritage sites are approached through telling a story related to them, potentially including identified qualities of such places (Mossberg, Therkelsen, Huijbens, Björk, & Olsson, 2011, p. 1). It can be argued that through storytelling is possible to gain some understanding of authors‟ cognitive and emotional needs. Specifically, through direct-experience storyboards (McQuaid, Goel, & McManus, 2003, p. 121) and their visual storytelling it could be possible to gather substantial information on authors‟ communities and everyday life and experiences. Indeed, when using the medium of visual storytelling the authors, as children in our case, play a main role in framing the topics considered (Fletcher & Cambre, 2009, p. 122).
According to Fraser (2003), storyboards are a communication tool and an effective means of sharing information in broad educational and learning settings as well as a good means for raising interest on the content. And the process of designing and developing a storyboard could be as well an outlet for participants‟ creativity (pp.
302-10 303). Without the need to be an artist, storyboarding is useful to effectively involve different audience groups and remove international and language barriers, thus facilitating the recognition of an idea by the audience (Sova & Sova, 2006, p. 2). Storyboards are usually used in the movie industry by directors to plan movies‟ events and characters‟ reactions to such events (2006, p. 3). Moreover, it can be argued that “storyboards often are better than photos for communicating problems, because you can more easily isolate the main issue” (2006, p. 6). Thus, in our case through the storyboards it can emerge an historical knowledge of the sites, some related personal experiences as well as the perception of why tourists visit them. They could give hints on the current site management institution work and portray also local cultural awareness.
This visual storytelling project captures the social history and heritage of some World Heritage sites and their surrounding communities. There is a downloadable online archive on the UNESCO website including winning storyboards of the latest competition (UNESCO, 2011) but also previous Patrimonito adventures videos (UNESCO, 2002). Final stories can be used in community mobilization and awareness-raising. Indeed, they can serve as pedagogical tools based on the participatory resources created asking participants to creatively process their socio-cultural heritage and residential history. Since, as pointed out by Foth, Klaebe, and Hearn (2008), “communal examination of the individual contributions residents make to the emerging historical consciousness of their location is intended to foster a better understanding of the region and its cultural diversity” (p. 10).
Visual storytelling and representations
Generally speaking storytelling calls on “the intersubjective process of collective meaning making … [Stories] are easily understood and responded to; thus they are immediately relational and have an implicit pedagogical significance” (Fletcher & Cambre, 2009, p. 122). Moreover, Frank (1995), cited by Fletcher and Cambre (2009), argues that storytelling “is for another as much as for oneself. In the reciprocity that is storytelling, the teller offers herself as guide” (p. 110). Master narratives can be considered as offering people “a way of identifying what is assumed to be a normative
11 experience … they become the vehicle through which we comprehend not only the stories of others, but crucially of ourselves as well” (Andrews, 2004, p. 1). While counter-narratives challenging dominant cultural narratives “might be experienced and articulated individually, but nonetheless they have common meaning. Even the most individualized and emotionally charger narratives belong to specific communities with specific scripts” (Seale, 2001, cited by Andrews, 2004, p. 2).
Fletcher and Cambre (2009) suggest that digital and visual storytelling as a pedagogical tool has emerged from previous research showing that “working in narrative and visual modes generates a complex intellectual engagement that is at once creative, socially oriented, and pedagogical” (p. 111). It can be an opportunity to narrate personal tales as a visual extension of their oral version (Foth, Klaebe, & Hearn, 2008, p. 11) and it can connect the author to the viewer, “in a dialogue around the nature of representation, meaning, and authority embedded in imagery and narrative” (Fletcher & Cambre, 2009, p. 115). Drawings as well as photos are resources for narrative inquiry. Both can be used for storytelling and function not only as narratives but also as counter-narratives by their content (Harrison, 2004), like when photographs show objects or moments which are meant to remain invisible (Andrews, 2004, p. 4).
Text has to be understood in a broad sense. Media texts and expressions have to be analyzed as signifying practice (Hall, 1997) and discussed in their different and often not explicit ways of dealing with development, change, transformations, awareness raising. It can be suggested that images and discourses through which we can make sense of the world are primarily organized also by media (Dahlgren, 1995, p. 28). Thus, storyboards dissemination trough videos can influence also the immediate present since media images when remembered can be easily mixed up between recent and old ones. Nonetheless, even a photographic image can help to shape modern notions of global citizenship such as in the case of the powerful photo of Sharbat Gula on the National Geographic‟s June 1985 cover (Hawkins, 2010, p. 1). Indeed, an icon can trigger an emotional bond between the audience and the image, functioning “as a powerful means of public address … visually reenacts and thus „performs‟ recognizable moments of collective life for various audiences” (2010, p. 2). A published photograph can catch the viewer attention while demanding some emotional answer. Moreover, media photos can be used as tools to promote or reinforce a cultural and political agenda. An iconic image
12 can potentially mobilize public sentiment around something specific, even if this can lead to commodification of such image (2010, p. 2).
Storytelling and cultural heritage
A narrative based approach can be useful for the community engagement process (Foth et al., 2008, p. 3) in heritage preservation. Experiential narratives are an alternative way to conceptualize an emotional connection to a place (2008, p. 2). They are new ways of capturing and expressing „lived experience‟ (2008, p. 5), especially experience of place, of community stakeholders and their perspectives. Narratives can support community meaning making about place (2008, p. 10) while communicating common values and rule sets (Boje & Hillon, 2008, p. 9). Indeed, they can act as a framework since “they can communicate identified core values and attractions in a destination in an understandable and memorable way” (Mossberg et al., 2011, p. 1).
Culture-based tourism can develop after objectifying the cultural legacy and “making it visible and tangible through storytelling” (Mossberg et al., 2011, p. 28). The story told about a cultural site is essential for tourists and not only for them. In fact, “a building or an artifact is always more than it seems to be … [its] different aspects can offer a clue for the development of a story … [which] is about the possibility for visitors to identify with the site” (Meurs & Verhoef, 2006, p. 83). Storytelling can result in strengthening the identity of a destination and in facilitating coherence and inclusiveness (Mossberg et al., 2011, p. 52).
A generator of cultural icons, such as can be considered the UNESCO World Heritage Patrimonito initiative, can catalyze public sentiment around powerful civic narratives but also help its viewers/readers to negotiate the quick and shifting currents of an emerging global culture (Hawkins, 2010, p. 7). Providing specific image-centered, narrative-based accounts of World Heritage sites‟ strips of reality, it can furnish those elements from which “scripts can be formed of imagined lives, their own as well as those of others living in other places … readers can experience and transform what they see and read, precisely by virtue of their exposure to multiple imagined worlds” (2010, p. 9). Iconic images have a mediating role and can be powerful agents mobilizing
13 collective action since they can help audiences in identifying themselves in many several public roles they occupy such as citizens, consumers, policy makers, tourists, etc. (2010, p. 13). Moreover, Hawkins (2010) suggests that an artistic representation of ourselves or our personal life it “may reflect accurately how someone else views us but not necessarily how we view ourselves” (p. 85).
According to Hall (1997) “we give objects, people and events meaning by the frameworks of interpretation which we bring to them” (p. 3). That is the words used, the stories told, the images produced, the emotions associated, the values placed, the classifications and conceptualization created, give them their meaning (1997, p. 3). In a broader sense, it can be suggested that UNESCO through an activity like Patrimonito is strategically trying to educate younger generations supplying additional narrative paradigms for reading the world and its heritage. Similarly to what a global mediascape like the National Geographic does with its readers, promoting geographic knowledge while “diffusing not just ideas about the unknown regions of the world, but ideas about the known, about American values, assumptions, and beliefs about the United States‟ global role” (Hawkins, 2010, p. 14). It has to be underlined that in the process of cultural consumption are involved always several layers of interpretation and then re-appropriation, thus also media audiences participate actively when constructing a cultural meaning (Hawkins, 2010, p. 25).
Therefore, it is particularly interesting to see what Patrimonito‟s storyboards, drawn by worldwide children, can tell us about the researched topics, including their connections with the communication for development theme. Indeed, videos, like those that will be realized by UNESCO on the basis of some winning storyboards, can shape the experience of viewers and influence their identities. These drawings with their narratives can be informational through the themes related to the World Heritage told by the Patrimonito character they use.
As institutional representations promoted by UNESCO they can shape the understanding of the viewers, citizens and policy makers, with regards to World Heritage sites preservation and challenges in their relationship with local communities and sustainable development.
14 Cultural Heritage
When discussing the definition of heritage it can be said that “etymologically, heritage is related to patrimony and signifies possessions and traditions that are inherited and passed on” (Rodwell, 2008, p. 7). Moreover, it can be argued that the content of heritage embraces both the material and the intangible (Graham & Howard, 2008, p.4). And that heritage “is created through acts of collecting and preservation by institutions such as archives, libraries, museums, through processes of social memory by which popular significance becomes based on memory stores and historical materials” (Dalbello, 2009, p. 1). However, to have an accepted definition of heritage we can refer to the vision provided by UNESCO:
Heritage is our legacy from the past, what we live with today, and what we pass on to future generations … the foundation of the present, the springboard for the future, with the present generation as its custodians and the creative link. (Rodwell, 2008, p. 7)
Nowadays, when defining heritage it is relevant the idea of present-centeredness. As claimed by Graham and Howard (2008) “we adopt a constructionist perspective which regards the concept as referring to the ways in which very selective past material artefacts, natural landscapes, mythologies, memories and traditions become cultural, political and economic resources for the present” (p. 1-2). A present-centered perspective considering heritage “as a form of collective memory, a social construct shaped by the political, economic and social concerns of the present” (2008, p. 2). Neither a material heritage site can avoid deriving its actual value “from the ideas and values that are projected on or through them” (2008, p.4). Indeed, heritage is more about associated meanings and representations created from them than actual past artifacts. And with representations of heritage related to demands of the present then the heritage value is put by people viewing it according to different lenses. Specifically:
It is now largely agreed that most heritage has little intrinsic worth. Rather, values are placed upon artefacts or activities by people who, when they view heritage, do so through a whole series of lenses, the most obvious of which are: nationality; religion; ethnicity; class; wealth; gender; personal history; and that strange lens known as „insideness‟. The validity of a particular lens may also be situationally determined rather than a constant while the interpretations will vary depending on the situation of the observer in time and space. (Graham & Howard, 2008, p. 2)
15 Therefore, as already stated, heritages are present-centered and as such “they are open to constant revision and change and are also both sources and results of social conflict” (2008, p. 3). Accordingly, an investigation of a specific heritage site can reveal several stakeholders and actors.
There is a living relationship between local communities and cultural heritage that can be a vital resource for local development (Mossberg et al., 2011, p. 4). Community heritage initiatives and heritage conservation can be seen as forms of cultural politics. Preservation, restoration and conservation are all related to protection of heritage and its cultural significance (Rodwell, 2008, p. 8). Thus, it can be claimed that “heritage should not only be returned to local people but that it should be housed, cared for and interpreted by them and for their own purposes” (Ashworth, 2003, p. 83). While it can be suggested that several interest groups are involved with heritage preservation, all with their own perspectives, requests and priorities related to the heritage sites (Sedky, 2009, p. xviii). Both the local community, concerned to continue using it for its legitimate and traditional lifestyle, and the global community bearing the responsibility of international cultural heritage safeguard. According to World Bank Staff (2001) the involved actors, broadly speaking, are “all the country‟s citizens who enjoy, admire, and use their heritage, and the nations themselves, which have the responsibility for preserving perpetuating, and transmitting the heritage” (p. 8).
In addition, it can be argued that “for most people heritage is not a value in itself, but an asset to be used” (Meurs & Verhoef, 2006, p. 76). Cultural heritage is a field where a fight between keepers, willing to preserve, and developers, trying to exploit ruins from the past, can happen (2006, p. 80). Nevertheless, some sees heritage in its contemporary uses of the past, “as a means of linking people and places through heritage as the vehicle for the creation and transmission of place identities” (Ashworth, 2003, p. 80). And it has to be underlined that:
Heritage is intrinsically „multivocal‟ that is, it is inevitably reflecting and transmitting the many different voices that have ascribed meaning to it; it is thus equally polysemic in conveying different messages, including in this case different place identities, either sequentially or synchronously. (Graham, 1997, Ashworth, 2003, p. 80)
16 Storytelling by providing an interpretation can create a link between readers and heritage sites. So, narratives of heritage places may communicate the local to the global.
UNESCO and the World Heritage
The UNESCO World Heritage Convention (WHC) concerns the protection of the world cultural and natural heritage (Rodwell, 2008, p. 64). The Convention:
introduced the concept of a common world heritage of „outstanding universal value‟ and of the duty of the international community to cooperate to ensure its protection and transmission to future generations for the benefit of humankind as a whole. (Rodwell, 2008, p. 65)
Briefly, it can be said that it was created to channel international cooperation willing to secure and safeguard for the future global cultural and natural heritage (2008, p. 76).
The World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger have been produced to reach the convention objectives. Key decisions have been taken by the WHC committee to grant more representativeness and quality in the list and the criteria to include sites in such folder have been reviewed several times in the last decades (Rodwell, 2008, p. 67; Cameron, 2009, p. 2-4); resulting in more openness to include also non-European cultural heritage and granting a broader interpretation of authenticity (Rodwell, 2008, pp. 71-72).
So far the World Heritage Convention is a living Convention “that has evolved in response to cultural and biological diversity, and to new ways of understanding heritage” (Cameron, 2009, p. 1). Cities represent the biggest part of the common global heritage since almost three hundreds are listed in UNESCO‟s World Heritage List (Meurs & Verhoef, 2006, p. 51). Its credibility is due to its inclusiveness of sites representing a global range of cultural activity and natural phenomena (Cameron, 2009, p. 1) since to be included in the list a site must have a recognized universal significance (World Bank Staff, 2001, p. 42). Another main aspect adding credibility is the good state of conservation and management of listed sites (Cameron, 2009, p. 5).
17 It is important to point out that threatened cultural heritage means that its value is not realized. Like when the substantial economic value of a cultural heritage site “it is not „captured‟ by those who either own the assets or who have the duty to conserve” (World Bank Staff, 2001, p. 44). Since there are links between cultural patrimony and people's education, UNESCO, together with other non-profit heritage organizations, tries to make survive places and practices threatened to disappear by promoting preservation as an essential premise of good cultural heritage management. Indeed, preservation and good management, allowing also the preserved assets to become more accessible to people, are needed to keep well the sites of cultural patrimony that can quickly deteriorate otherwise (2001, p. 1).
The cartoon series entitled Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures was launched in 2002 and the storyboard competition analyzed in this study involved secondary school children, aiming to raise their awareness on the importance of World Heritage and about their role in preserving it against the threats the listed sites are facing. Patrimonito, which means small heritage in Spanish, is the main character of this UNESCO activity and represents an international young heritage guardian. It was created in 1995 in Norway by a group of Spanish-speaking students during a UNESCO seminar (UNESCO, 2002).
The winning storyboards of the competition will be then “professionally animated and produced in CD-ROM format for global diffusion to schools and at World Heritage Youth events” (UNESCO, 2002). As stated on the UNESCO website (2002) Patrimonito is a tool “to popularize and promote awareness of World Heritage preservation and conservation as well as the activities of the Centre among young people”. Specifically, the 2010/2011 competition themes were related to a chosen World Heritage site: “World Heritage and the role of Communities (people living in and around World Heritage sites); World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism (visiting responsibly); World Heritage and Sustainable Development (how to balance preserving heritage for future generations with meeting human needs); World Heritage and Biodiversity (sites that are crucial to sustaining life, nature or species, including those endangered)” (UNESCO, 2010a).
18 Heritage and Identity
Media and education influence identities formation. Media influence identity since they can represent a shared reference. Representations emerging from visual storytelling can give a hint of what is the self and the identity. Heritage and shared interpretations of the past can be used to build narratives of inclusion and otherness since “through its cultural heritage a society becomes visible to itself and to others” (Assmann, 2004, p.10). For example, the National Geographic magazine through its “texts and photographs cooperated to shape readers‟ perceptions of the world but not to determine them … [NG] provided a means for Americans to imaginatively negotiate national, ethnic, and cultural identities within a rapidly changing modern world” (Hawkins, 2010, p. 27). Similarly, it can be suggested that within the Patrimonito competition the storyboard drawing process itself could have been a stage for the continuous construction of the self and the other.
In addition, it can be suggested that:
Communities, like individuals, are constantly in the process of composing and recomposing their own autobiographies … we narrate and represent our identity, and then reproduce these representations, by means of the public idioms and tools at our disposal … self experiences and discourses of the self provide idioms for narrating collective experience and identity. (Carr, 1986, cited by Freeman, 2004, p. 291)
So, self experiences can become a way to narrate collective identity, as with the reflective process of drawing stories narrating one‟s self, fostering the emergence of a common and shared sense of place identity among generations. Particularly, Mossberg, Therkelsen, Huijbens, Björk, and Olsson (2011) suggest that a story linked to local heritage would enhance the experience and strengthen the memory of the place among those involved in the storytelling process that have probably internalized the most those values linked to the stories (p. 43).
According to Graham and Howard (2008), “identity is about sameness and group membership and quite central to its conceptualization is the Saidian discourse of the „other‟ … These attributes of otherness are fundamental to representations of identity, which are constructed in counter-distinction to them” (p. 5). In addition, heritage and identity are interconnected with place and territoriality. Indeed, it is possible to refer to
19 identity as “the ways in which markers such as: heritage; language; religion; ethnicity; nationalism; and shared interpretations of the past, are used to construct narratives of inclusion and exclusion that define communities” (p. 5). However, even if place identity is relevant it can be composed by multiple layers entwining the local with the global, as well as with heritage. And it can be argued that the national level is usually privileged when dealing with heritage and identity; constraining “the effectiveness of other forms of representing heritage and identity such as, for example, the European, and, most certainly, the idea of universal values embodied in the concept of world heritage” (p. 8).
Rodwell (2008) claims that cultural heritage is an essential element to promote and affirm national identity (p. 171). Indeed, cities representing part of world heritage are usually also “living spaces to be occupied and appropriated by local communities as an essential part of the process of safeguarding those communities‟ identity and sense of belonging” (p. 187). Thus, promoting the preservation of cultural heritage, safeguarding its integrity and authenticity, has implication in terms of societal identity (p. 186). Like it can happen if “either there is a change in the physical location of the community or there is a change in the nature of the place such that the community no longer identifies with it” (Ashworth, 2003, p. 81).
Accordingly, local communities of world heritage locations can adjust their place images to that of the tourists. In other words “they come to accept and incorporate in their own self-image the identity projected to them by visitors. They assume the identity that has been sold and is now reflected back to them” (2003, p. 86). So local communities can become the one sold to tourists. Especially if there was little local self-awareness until tourism developed, it can happen that those images and expression of local culture promoted for others “became themselves adopted by local communities as part of their own self-identity” (2003, p. 89). Thus, if several place identities can emerge to meet the needs of multiple communities, then it can be argued that also “identities, and the heritage that expresses and supports them, are community creations” (2003, p. 95). Authenticators of the heritage identity and the heritage that expresses and supports them are community creations. Nonetheless, it can happen that “different place identities lead to a form of heritage dissonance … cultural, economic and, even on occasion, physical, displacement of locals who no longer feel „at home‟ in the tourist place” (2003, p. 86).
20 Heritage Tourism
Singh, Timothy, and Dowling (2003) argue that heritage tourism “has both positive and negative impacts on destination communities” (p. 11). Positive effects at the local level like enhancing the creation of new job opportunities and businesses, as well as improving quality of life and community sense of ownership. But also negative impacts can happen such as threatening local heritage, changing sense of authenticity of local communities and harming traditional social structures. Local communities at the receiving end of possible negative effects due to mass tourism are also the stakeholders of the positive effects that they could help to achieve through participation in the planning process of tourism in their area.
Thus, there are possible benefits and risks linked to tourism. Mass tourism can bring fast wealth but also relevant socioeconomic problems (2003, p. 5). And can also cause cases of staged authenticity to fulfill tourists‟ basic expectations. Indeed, “where the number of visitors greatly exceeds the host population … some members of the local community may construct a boundary zone in which they are willing to provide public evidence of their lifestyle” (Fagence, 2003, p. 63). Social changes can occur at the family and community levels due to the risks of cultural prostitution and homogenization of culture leading to local identity loss and cultural commodification (2003, p. 62). Particularly, it can be relevant “the „demonstration effect‟ … the impact of foreign ways on a host community in terms of value systems, standards of behavior, and attitudes towards people, property, culture and spaces” (2003, p. 62). While concerning the impact on local culture, tourism can be blamed for its loss of importance “by trivializing it or by causing it to be commodified and packaged for easy consumption (and even transportability in the form of souvenirs)” (2003, p. 60). Moreover, it has to be pointed out that in local communities not always work the host-guest analogy. Indeed, “many residents within the host community do not necessarily see their function as that of a host, primarily because they do not benefit directly from the economic transactions that take place” (Singh, Timothy, & Dowling 2003, p. 10).
However, tourism can also support the local cultures and identities through valorization of local heritage (Ashworth, 2003, p. 82). But it has to be considered that:
21 Tourists are in search of, and can only be sold, their heritage, which can be incorporated into their pre-existing mental constructs about the past … Consequently, as the consumer decides what is heritage, then in so far as tourists and local residents are assumed to be different in various ways then so will be the heritage. (2003, p. 82)
So the sense of place by locals is different from the tourist one. Tourism pushes towards “easily recognizable, reproducible and sellable components of the place identity, which it simplifies, homogenizes and stereotypes” (2003, p. 84). Therefore, it is likely the emergence of different senses of place, at least one for tourist consumption and one for local identification (2003, p. 85). In such sense, also tourism can create heritage (2003, p. 94).
A sustainable development of tourism aims to stop further degeneration of heritage. A goal of sustainable tourism is to empower local communities in the tourism management and planning of future developments in their area. If the local community is strongly heritage-aware then it would impact on tourism development through its consistent participation as relevant stakeholder. Some key elements are quality of the experience for visitors and quality of life for inhabitants. Which are deeply interconnected since the improvement of the visitors‟ experience requires an advancement of resources and quality of life of residents (Meurs & Verhoef, 2006, p. 75). Indeed, an historic city without its residents is no longer a living heritage place. Thus, when thinking of a sustainable cultural tourism improving the quality of life of the host community it emerges a need for a bottom-up approach in strategic planning (2006, p. 77). Social and cultural sustainability of the local community can be fostered by locally participated management strategies (Fagence, 2003, p. 60). However, when tourism is already consolidated in the destination, decisions on the future of the site are usually based on political and economic criteria instead of emerging from local dialogue and participation. Within a sustainable tourism approach local populations are relevant in the decision-making process, participating in guiding tourism to have a low impact on local culture, heritage and environment while supporting job and wealth creation. Thus, tourism can be used as an economic justification for heritage preservation and benefit surrounding communities.
22 A Communication for Development perspective
Since the adoption of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in 1972 the idea of sustainable development has been considered as a goal to be achieved promoting and implementing the protection and conservation of the natural and cultural heritage (Rodwell, 2008, p. 64). It has to be pointed out that “the World Heritage Convention is perhaps the most widely recognized and effective conservation instrument in the world” (Cameron, 2009, p. 10). And some of its goals have been reached, like community engagement in urban development of listed cities that “is now widely practiced in relation to both heritage issues and future sustainability” (Foth et al., 2008, p. 5). Indeed, when “historic cities are considered in terms of their functionality within communities … then the relationship to the three core issues of sustainability becomes more evident” (Rodwell, 2008, p. 58).
Concerning the engagement of youth by the UNESCO World Heritage system it has to be pointed out that for it “to be credible, young people must play a part. The long term conservation of our World Heritage Sites depends on the will of future generations to take over stewardship responsibilities. Today's youth will be the decision-makers of tomorrow” (Cameron, 2009, p. 8). Thus, in the framework of the UNESCO education programme, aiming to provide education about World Heritage, in 2002 “a workshop to mobilize young people was held and the first episode of the series Patrimonito’s World
Heritage Adventures was launched” (2009, p. 9).
The Patrimonito project is based on a Communication for Development strategy focusing on consciousness raising and empowerment, while promoting understanding of community issues. Indeed, participants are encouraged to draw stories on issues of relevance for them, based on their daily life and experiences. As stated above, “images are seen as a powerful medium for communicating issues and promoting change” (Drew, Duncan, & Sawyer, 2010, p. 1678). Thus, the visual storytelling emerging from storyboards that will be then translated in videos can be considered as a kind of entertainment-education and as such “making the core problems visible and thereby empowering audiences and putting pressure on politicians” (Tufte, 2005, p. 160). As well as helpful for the “identification of social problems, power inequalities and their root causes, most often enhancing collective action and structural change” (2005, p.
23 161). A main goal is to empower citizens and communities to understand their role and act as primary stakeholders (Rodwell, 2008, p. 196). Through knowledge communication enabling them to take relevant decisions shaping their lives and enhancing social change and sustainable development (Davies, 2004).
Patrimonito is a fitting example of a ComDev participative initiative “engaging with school children through a competition in which they were invited to submit written work, artwork, and performance” (Rodwell, 2008, p. 168). So far, the World Heritage Centre has produced 8 episodes of Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures. Developing videos from storyboards designed by young people and aiming to mobilize other youngsters towards an active participation in World Heritage preservation (UNESCO, 2010c). In this bottom-up approach there is a focus on understanding the identity of a heritage site, enabling “informed choices to be made about what is significant … and for local distinctiveness to be safeguarded through common ownership by its community” (Rodwell, 2008, p. 196).
The Patrimonito competition can be framed also as a crowd-sourced storyboarding tool from a ComDev point of view. Indeed, it collects ideas and shared knowledge emerging from local communities and encourages and allows high participation of local children in the process. This tool can help creating critical consciousness and stimulate dialogue, even if such artwork can be considered already in itself as a form of dialogue. Students participating in this visual storytelling exercise can experience like “self-discovery of their own intellectual and creative potential, a nuanced … understanding of themselves as socially embedded individuals, and an increased awareness of the social complexity that surrounds them” (Fletcher & Cambre, 2009, p. 126).
It can be argued that UNESCO instilled a ComDev approach in some of its activities, like with Patrimonito, aiming to engage young people as active participants in their heritage. Indeed, “treated as passive consumers, their interest in heritage is not awakened. Treated as participants, they are amongst its most valuable ambassadors” (Rodwell, 2008, p. 168). There is an intrinsic value represented by the information sharing and the inclusiveness of letting everybody participate (Quarray & Ramiréz, 2009; Davies, 2004). And it can be claimed that participating in the Patrimonito storyboard competition can increase the sense of public ownership and shared stewardship for public heritage resources (Springer et al., 2008, p. 15).
24
III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
“Narrative can make us understand” (Mitchell, 2011, p. 199)
This work lies within a qualitative and visual research context. In this study I chose different methods to investigate my research questions and I conducted an analysis looking for elements pointing out and clarifying the ComDev approach and themes outlined previously in the theoretical framework.
As methodological framework I tried an interpretative ethnography of the collected media texts produced through this UNESCO initiative, which represent the combination of a precious and wide collective experience to be investigated. Indeed, it can be argued that since the competition invites young people to express their ideas in the form of a storyboard for the Patrimonito's World Heritage Adventures animated series (UNESCO, 2010c) then such storyboards are already meaningful texts to be analyzed. As Drew, Duncan, and Sawyer (2010) pointed out:
qualitative approaches are valuable in researching the lived experiences of young people … social sciences have shifted to focus more on children and youth as actors in their own right, playing a significant role in both shaping and being shaped by the social world. (p. 1677)
Through such texts I think is possible to get meaningful insights. Using representations to get a deeper understanding of how those involved in a visual approach like drawing, while addressing issues such as world heritage, preservation and their daily lives and communities, define their identity. In fact, they have been produced directly by young participants and thus communicate the memories and representations which they felt as relevant with regards to the topics of the Patrimonito competition.
Such content has been drawn from a variety of geographic locations but also from a similar population like children engaged in secondary education. The data collected for this study has been produced by a limited age group that is young people between the ages of 12 and 18 years. Thus, a visual approach is appropriate also because it can overcome some limitations and challenges due to the fact that “young people are still developing the skills and capacities to readily consider and articulate complex
25 understandings” (Drew et al., 2010, p. 1678). Moreover, as well as with observation, also the visual approach “brings the participants‟ worlds of experience into closely considered view” (Pickering, 2008, p. 9), since through it the narratives of youngsters engaged in the initiative can be actively explored.
I decided not to perform a quantitative research using content analysis as a method to detect patterns emerging from the texts. Instead, I chose qualitative methods (Pickering, 2008) as the main approach for my research. But this study does not consist of informed interviews or participant observation. Observation has not been considered as one of the methods that could best support this study in obtaining good findings and contributing to the overall research theme. And qualitative interviews with those involved in the production of the researched texts were not possible for several reasons.
Nevertheless, I used a combination of methods to benefit the research goals with more insights from the analysis. Indeed, a multi-methodological approach, or triangulation, “enhances the validity of the empirical results” (Belz & Baumbach, 2010, p. 307) since it can reduce the pitfalls that every single research method has and lead to double-checked findings. Mixing several methods, can lead to a better and deeper understanding of the researched topic (Cottle, Hansen, Negrine, & Newbold, 1998) because “the strengths of one method may help overcome the limitations of another” (Pickering, 2008, p.106). Therefore, a combination of semiotics and visual methods has been chosen as the form of triangulation for this project work. In this way, empirical results emerging from different approaches can be compared and lead to better comprehensive and general findings.
Even if a full analysis of all media levels related to the object of study would be recommended in order to obtain more relevant findings, this was not possible due to several constraints related to this kind of project work. Thus, I decided to conduct only an analysis at the level of the media text. However, it would have been better to interview several people involved with the storyboards competition – either UNESCO organizers that guided the texts production or some of the winners – then apply semiotic and visual analysis, and finally receive feedbacks on the research findings involving again participants in the initiative at all levels.
26 I tried to limit as much as possible the influence of my own culture when conducting the analysis and let the storyboards speak but some researcher bias is unavoidable as pointed out by several researchers (Alvesson & Sköldberg, 2009). These limitations, related to the fact that the interpretative analysis cannot avoid some bias due to the researcher‟s self and culture, can be considered as actual weaknesses of this methodology since they affect the meaning given to the analyzed data and the final findings.
Concerning ethical issues when dealing with visual research (Wiles et al., 2008), such as the use of children‟s drawings, Mitchell (2011) argues that “„doing least harm‟ and „doing most good‟ must surely remain as the cornerstones of our work as researchers” (p. 15). I adhered to such principle since it was not possible to send neither a survey nor request an informed consent to the competition winners. In fact, they were not directly contactable since they participated sending their storyboards to UNESCO mainly through their schools all over the world. This is a real research weakness since to get direct feedbacks from the winners of the competition could have been very informative and added something to the research findings.
The online data collection for the analysis was conducted without any access or permission constraints that can usually obstruct traditional observation-based research. Taking into account suggestions to avoid the possibility of information overload (Cottle et al., 1998, p. 58) and procedures adopted for netnography, that can be conducted entirely unobtrusively if desired (Kozinets, 2002) and without the ethical necessity of presenting research findings back to participants (Sandlin, 2007, pp. 289-290).
The analysis was done on texts downloaded from a publicly accessible website, where registration to read the published electronic content is not required and the available material can be considered for public access and use (Paccagnella, 1997). Internet scholars and researchers have not reached a common agreement about ethical rules to follow when dealing with material from public web sites (Mann & Stewart, 2000). However, an informed consent from related UNESCO staff has been requested and obtained. Indeed, I sent an email to the staff of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre informing them about my research purposes on their Patrimonito competition. They replied to it stating that I could freely use for my research all the related content on the UNESCO website.
27 Visual Methods
Participating in the Patrimonito initiative children have been asked basically, through a visual story on a World Heritage location that is linked to their identity, to depict their life in a storyboard. As described in the Patrimonito competition guidelines:
Preparing a storyboard is like drawing a comic book. It is a script that presents a story through sketches in chronological sequence. Usually, a storyboard is drawn in pencil or ink. The images or visual illustrations of the story are portrayed using a series of frames. (UNESCO, 2010b)
While according to Mitchell (2011), arguing that also choosing the genre to be represented, either a fictional story or a documentary, will influence the storyboarding process, “a storyboard, very simply, is a visual outline or skeleton, made up of a series of drawings or sketches … each sketch or drawing represents one camera shot” (p. 75).
The choice to use a visual approach to investigate this case can be easily understood since storyboards appear relevant as narrated stories emerging through visual storytelling. Visual participatory tools as photography, video, drawing, and more recently digital storytelling are all participatory visual methodologies and part of qualitative studies (Mitchell, 2011, p. xi). Thus, drawing is one of the tools that can be used in visual research to engage participants and it can be argued that resulting visual data can lead to social action, pushing communities and individuals to act (2011, p.4). Mitchell (2011) states that “participation does not have to be limited to „take a picture‟ or „draw a picture‟ … the constant is some aspect of the visual as a mode of inquiry and representation, and as a mode of dissemination and engagement” (p.5).
In visual studies there are three types of texts to be considered. The actual visual texts are the primary texts. Then there are also the producer texts and the viewer texts (Mitchell, 2011, p. 79). In this study I focused on the produced texts as valuable data. The drawings, or storyboards, are an immediate visual text. A primary text “that can include captions and more extensive curatorial statements or interpretative writings that reflect what the participants have to say about the visual texts” (2011, p.5).
28 The analysis involved visual texts produced by young people in a variety of geographic locations. It was relevant to gather perspectives through texts from a selection of worldwide children. Moreover, it was also meaningful considering such perspectives as unselfconscious examples of how these children wanted to portray their communities and themselves (Deacon, Pickering, Golding, & Murdock, 2010). Indeed, it can be claimed that young people can use drawings, or storyboards, to engage in personal and social narrative representing their lives to the rest of the world. And Mitchell (2011) argues that in a social change framework is the active participation of young people that can make a difference since “using visual arts-based approaches … engage them in „stepping outside‟ the everyday” (p. 93). Drawing can be a participatory tool for collaboration and disruption since “understanding and positioning participants as instigators and producers of knowledge can dislodge power dynamics in a given social context” (Walsh, 2007, cited by Mitchell, 2011, p. 30). Indeed, Mitchell (2011) claims that “the most effective messages and campaigns for change come from inside the community, when the participants themselves create the message” (p. 115).
Therefore, this kind of text has great potential “particularly as it is framed within a youth-as-knowledge-producers context” (Mitchell, 2011, p. 132). According to Drew et al. (2010), as already pointed out:
Because of their degree of life experience and maturing cognitive development, young people are still developing the skills and capacities to readily consider and articulate complex understandings. Visual storytelling can help promote reflection and communication about issues that can be difficult to conceptualize and express, especially for young participants. (p. 1685)
So it can be argued that visual storytelling appears as a powerful tool to research with young people and their visual materials. While the use of drawings as visual data in visual research “can be a very efficient and engaging approach to obtaining the perspectives of communities, particularly communities of children and young people.” (Mitchell, 2011, p. 125)
An important aspect of visual research is its multi-audience dimensionality. Indeed, it can be claimed that “the same set of images, regardless of whether they are drawings or photos or digital stories, may reach different audiences through different formats”
29 (Mitchell, 2011, p. 194). So it has to be considered the chance of working across genres of visual methodologies. As pointed out by Mitchell (2011),
Drawings might be used as an entry point to working with video … in one project … storyboarding (or using drawing in planning out a video) was the main activity with the participants, followed by the various groups performing their stories. Thus, although „video‟ was in the imagination of the participants from the beginning (what would this issue look like as a video?), the ways of enacting the issue came through the mode of drawing and performance. (p.7)
The visual texts can be considered also as performed ethnography (Goldstein, 2000, cited by Mitchell, 2011, p. 8). Indeed, “the drawing is a kind of performance and it tells us what participant words and stories look like in motion” (Galman, 2009, p. 213). Moreover,
It is possible to think about all of the images created by participants, and the stories they told in teacher education contexts, as performances – or negotiations – of their valued identity. What individuals choose to highlight in representations, like the story they choose to tell, is an important facet of their developing identity. (Goffman, 1959, cited by Galman, 2009, p. 212)
Specifically, storyboards in this study represent visual data produced as engaging narrative on communities and heritage preservation and reflecting a deep self-consciousness on such topics.
As social research the cultural and social practices and processes embedded in the visual texts have to be investigated. When engaging in the interpretative process involved in working with visual research, there are several considerations to take into account. From the reflexivity in the research process, that is “situating one‟s self in the research texts – taking it personally” (Mitchell, 2011, p.11), to close-reading strategies. Since the process of working with the visual data “can draw on a range of practices that may be applied to other types of transcripts and data sets, including content analysis and engaging in coding and developing thematic categories” (2011, p.11).
Still, according to Mitchell (2011), in social research also material culture, such as things and artifacts, become a social text to be added as evidence for analysis. And he suggests focusing on socio-semiotics as a reading strategy when dealing with material culture, using the categories of denotation and connotation to read the meanings of
30 objects (p. 35-37). Particularly, when considering the exploration of the connotative meaning Mitchell (2011) cites Riggins (1994) and refers to mapping as:
to describe the ways in which objects serve as entry points for the telling of stories about the self … the ways in which the self uses the displayed objects (gift, heirlooms, photographs, etc.) as a way of plotting its social network, representing its cosmology and ideology, and projecting its history onto the world‟s map, its spatial spread so to speak. (p. 41)
Already social archaeologists pointed out the interpretive potential when working with the mute evidence of artifacts and written documents (Hodder, 1998, cited by Mitchell, 2011, p. 49); and Mitchell (2011) suggests that “it is worth considering the interpretive possibilities of objects, documents and things … in so doing, we can situate the thing or object within broader societal question” (p. 49). In fact, “narrative inquiry can be enriched through the inclusion of texts of material culture … in such contexts, a dress is much more than just a dress, and an object is not just an object” (2011, p. 50).
In the framework of qualitative research and visual studies this textual approach to material culture and artifacts can be used to complement other qualitative methods. Indeed, a visual story can enhance our understanding of the topic since it can “show how an ordinary, routine self is intricately connected with wider social issues and social relationships” (2011, p. 44). Thus, the visual analysis for this study included a situated reading of the drawings.
Finally, when analyzing a visual text it can be considered also the questions of presence and absence, visibility and invisibility. Thus, “asking not only what we think they show us … but also what they don‟t (can‟t) show us” (Spence, 1986, cited by Mitchell, 2011, p. 99). Furthermore, participatory drawings by children, like those objects of this study, could be explored also in the context of a participatory archive, comparing them to similar visual texts produced in different times (Mitchell, 2011, p. 118).
Due to the visual form of the texts I probably avoided part of the loss of relevant cultural aspects that can be related to specific language use and that can happen during a field research in a foreign setting. But still it was a challenge to conduct analysis on texts produced in a cultural and social context different from mine. Indeed, some limits and challenges of interpretation can occur during the categorization of the drawings
31 when they are removed from their actual context (2011, p. 126). It can be pointed out that “presenting the visual „narrative‟ as a text that „speaks for itself‟ is problematic” (Atkinson & Delamont, 2006, cited by Galman, 2009, p. 212). Because “the cornerstone of community-based visual research is reflexivity – the reflexivity of the research team, but also the community and the production process” (Mitchell, 2011, p. 16); and images “are culturally and historically situated, and as such their interpretation should include the full participation of the individuals who create them” (Galman, 2009, p. 214-215). While, as previously stated, after the analysis it was not possible to receive feedbacks from the participants and organizers of the initiative.
Semiotics and Transmedia Storytelling
The semiotics approach considers languages as system of signs. A semiotic analysis try to understand not only what signs mean but also how they mean (Groensteen, 2007, p. viii). Semiotics can be applied to any cultural form that thus can be „decoded‟ (Creeber, 2006), including visual texts. Using a semiotic perspective to explore the Patrimonito storyboards means to use mainly semiotics of comics even if these texts can be considered as part of transmedia storytelling. Indeed, the whole UNESCO Patrimonito narrative includes a series of stories expressed through different media like comics and videos. Where children “can participate in the expansion of the fictional world by applying this set of attributes [characters, topics, and aesthetic style of the fictional world] to create new situations and characters” (Scolari, 2009, p. 600).
It can be argued that performing textual analysis means that “we make an educated guess at some of the most likely interpretations that might be made of that text” (McKee, 2003, p. 1). A text “is something we make meaning from” (2003, p. 4) and with a textual analysis we try to understand the assumptions behind the representations in the text. Briefly, “how these texts tell their stories, how they represent the world, and how they make sense of it” (2003, p. 17).
As pointed out by El Refaie (2009) “the greater the degree of iconic abstraction, the more interpretative work and knowledge of cultural conventions are required on the part
