Visualising Femmephobia Research Through Art
When Cindy Zhang started Forensic Science at Trent University, they thought their passion for visual arts would take a backseat.
Now entering their third-year, Cindy finds themselves using their passion to design illustrations for a new research piece, The Femmephobia 101 Workbook. Scheduled to launch this summer, the workbook is a collaboration between Dr. Rhea Ashley Hoskin (Peter Gzowski College, '05), an AMTD Global Talent Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Waterloo, and Dr. Karen Blair, the director of the Trent Social Relations, Attitudes and Diversity Lab in the Psychology Department, along with Dr. Toni Serafini and Dr. Jocelyne Scott.
When Cindy began studying science at Trent, they put their passion for art on the backburner. “I didn't have many chances to improve my art skills with larger projects like I got to in the past,” Cindy says. “Working on this workbook did so much to reaffirm my personal identity as an artist, in ways that I didn't realize I had been missing.”
Combining Academic Research with Art
The Femmephobia 101 Workbook walks the reader through Dr. Hoskin’s theory on femmephobia in a Q&A format. Using Cindy’s illustrations, the workbook presents the research in a medium more accessible to readers.
When Cindy was brought on, they established a unique illustration style and colour palette to make the workbook more engaging. Dr. Hoskin says research may be inaccessible to a broad audience, but visual arts grab readers’ attention.
“We hope that the workbook Cindy has been illustrating will help people to truly ‘visualize’ femmephobia in terms of their own views and life experiences,” says Dr. Hoskin. “I think that the visual approach will be helpful in that respect.”
Not only is this one of Cindy’s first major visual arts undertakings since starting at Trent, but it is also the first time Cindy’s work has been published in an academic resource.
“This is my first time having my work featured in a formally publicized work. I am so incredibly grateful that Dr. Hoskin and Dr. Blair have given me the opportunity to be a part of something like this and create work I can be truly proud of.”
What is Femmephobia?
“Femmephobia refers to the devaluation and regulation of femininity or the way that femininity is seen as ‘lesser than’, sometimes rejected and often scrutinized by others within society,” says Dr. Hoskin.
Dr. Hoskin and Prof. Blair have been collecting data on how participants view and experience femmephobia, with the support of an Insight Development Grant from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
According to Prof. Blair, while formal research papers are important, the workbook is a way to present the findings of their research to a broad audience.
“All of our research is publicly funded and so it is really important that our findings do find their way back to the public in as many formats as possible,” says Prof. Blair. “The workbook is a really great way of doing this, as it doesn’t just tell people about our research, it lets them apply the findings to their own lives and to work through their own thoughts on the topic.”
What’s next for Cindy?
Along with getting their first illustrator credit, Cindy has been posting a series on the Instagram for Prof. Blair’s lab, KLB Research, sharing stories from local and international members of the lab regarding pride and their queer experience.
“I was very surprised by the heartwarming and eye-opening responses we received for this project, so I’d encourage everyone to take a look.”
During the school year, Cindy will continue to work at KLB research while finishing their third year of Forensic Science at Trent.
CONTACT INFO:
Find out more about The Femmephobia 101 Workbook here.
Posted on June 29, 2022