Mark Roxburgh
The University of Newcastle, Design, Communication & IT, Department Member
- I specialise in strategic procrastination and I'm a loose canon for hire. I tolerate online social networking. I like... moreI specialise in strategic procrastination and I'm a loose canon for hire. I tolerate online social networking. I like people. I like watching them and talking to them. They are curious beings. I am quite insightful into human behaviour and motivation as well as social trends. I pick up all this stuff from getting my students to research stuff I'm interested on the pretext they might learn something about design. I think they usually do. I always learn something about design and people in doing this.
I'm interested in design for experience, though I don’t design stuff. I take out focus photos (I should have been in the Biennale not that bloke from Finland). I think abstraction is a crucial and overlooked concept in design and design research - too often it is all predicated on realism.
I'm a post-semiotician (not in the John Stewart sense but as in just so over it). I have coined the term post-definition to indicate that I am also over that peculiarly late 20th century pre-occupation with meaning. I think detailed analysis as an intellectual activity has the potential to become redundant, if not impossible, because of the ever increasing amount of data we are generating. My take on this is that if it becomes almost impossible to pull things apart into their constituent bits then we are better off looking to synthesis as the way forward. As such I am interested in generalisations and stereotypes - after all isn't that what design personas are?
I like being contrary and doing stuff that seems irrelevant. If everyone is doing something then I'm suspicious of it. I'm ambivalent about technology, though I use it. Sometimes being a luddite for the sake of it is fun.
I suspect most people think my work marginal at best. That's ok by me but I think it might be better than they think.edit
Medical and healthcare practice is likely to see fundamental changes in the future that will require a different approach to the way in which we educate, train, and assess the next generation of healthcare professionals. The anatomical... more
Medical and healthcare practice is likely to see fundamental changes in the future that will require a different approach to the way in which we educate, train, and assess the next generation of healthcare professionals. The anatomical sciences will need to be part of that challenge so they continue to play a full role in preparing students with the knowledge and ever increasingly the skills and competencies that will contribute to the fundamentals of their future capacity to practice effectively. Although there have been significant advances in anatomical science pedagogy, by reviewing learning and assessment in an apparently unrelated field, provides an opportunity to bring a different perspective and enable appropriate challenge of the current approaches in anatomy. Design learning has had to continually reimagine itself in response to the shifting landscape in design practice and the threats associated with technology and societal change. Design learning has also long used a student‐centric active pedagogy and allied authentic assessment methods and, therefore, provides an ideal case study to help inform future changes required in anatomical learning and assessment.
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Anthropology seemed to have a bad name in the late twentieth century. The textual turn and subsequent postmodernist critique presented a substantial challenge to the perceived evils of anthropology's colonial, empirical, objectifying... more
Anthropology seemed to have a bad name in the late twentieth century. The textual turn and subsequent postmodernist critique presented a substantial challenge to the perceived evils of anthropology's colonial, empirical, objectifying and quasi-scientific history and ...
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Roxburgh, Mark. Cara Law's Floating Life and Australian Indentity [online]. Metro Magazine: Media & Education Magazine, No. 110, 1997: 3-6. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary... more
Roxburgh, Mark. Cara Law's Floating Life and Australian Indentity [online]. Metro Magazine: Media & Education Magazine, No. 110, 1997: 3-6. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary ;dn=719517278073031;res=IELHSS> ISSN: 0312-2654. [cited 04 Feb 10].
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Stuart Hall contends that identity is 'constituted not outside but within representation' (Hall, 1990: 236). Representation is de-fined as 'an image, likeness or re-production' (Onions, 1973: 1800) thus... more
Stuart Hall contends that identity is 'constituted not outside but within representation' (Hall, 1990: 236). Representation is de-fined as 'an image, likeness or re-production' (Onions, 1973: 1800) thus the manifestation of a masculine Australian national identity in the beer ...
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Abstract Mark Roxburgh's research over the past decade has focused on the evolving conceptualization, discourse and development of research methodologies for design. This has lead him to question the historical pattern of design... more
Abstract Mark Roxburgh's research over the past decade has focused on the evolving conceptualization, discourse and development of research methodologies for design. This has lead him to question the historical pattern of design whereby the methods and ...
Research Interests: Sociology, Cultural Studies, Aesthetics, Epistemology, Design, and 15 moreArt, Design education, Design Theory, Design Research, Visual Communication, Concept Mapping, Design thinking, Creative thinking, Ideation Phase, Future of the Book, Critical Literacy, Socially responsive communication, Communication and media Studies, Conceptualization, and Print Communications
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RMIT Training Pty Ltd (ACN 006 067 349) of Kay House, Level 3, 449 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Victoria, trading as RMIT Publishing (the Publisher) grants you, the User, access to the text of the selected and purchased copyright works... more
RMIT Training Pty Ltd (ACN 006 067 349) of Kay House, Level 3, 449 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Victoria, trading as RMIT Publishing (the Publisher) grants you, the User, access to the text of the selected and purchased copyright works included in the INFORMIT PAY-...
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Digital automation is on the rise in a diverse range of industries. The technologies employed here often make use of artificial intelligence (AI) and its common form, machine learning (ML) to augment or replace the work completed by human... more
Digital automation is on the rise in a diverse range of industries. The technologies employed here often make use of artificial intelligence (AI) and its common form, machine learning (ML) to augment or replace the work completed by human agents. The recent emergence of a variety of design automation platforms inspired the authors to undertake a review of the research literature on the impact of Automation, AI and ML on visual communication, and its subset practice of graphic design, with a view to understanding the implications for the education of practitioners entering that specific field. This review discovered that there was relatively little research published on the topic but what did exist noted that graphic design as we have known it has an uncertain future. Furthermore, the scant literature argued for a shift in educational and professional focus away from the aesthetic and technical skills required to design visual modes of communication and towards a deeper engagement with the softer, more human skills associated with negotiation, facilitation and judgement. The paucity of literature on this topic suggests to the authors that visual communication design education and the industry are poorly prepared for the impact of automation, AI and ML on them.
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Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour, Kittler,... more
Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour, Kittler, Manovich Thibodeau, Bolter and Grusin and others) the article addresses the question: what is the media theory context of hybrid media? This theoretical sketch covers media extensions, the materiality of media, psychotechnologies, and networks. Media hybrid processes are identified across these layers, both in historical context and within the operation of digital media, remediation, and softwarization. Finally, the hybridization of media design through deep remixing hints at the fluidity of design practice. Overall, media hybridity challenges the entrenched notion of separation of media. Hybridization ripples across all layers of media—material, logical, and cultural/artistic.
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ABSTRACT This paper presents demonstrable insights from the creation of a microbudget feature-length narrative drama film with high production values. As a case study, I am using a feature film I have written and directed titled... more
ABSTRACT This paper presents demonstrable insights from the creation of a microbudget feature-length narrative drama film with high production values. As a case study, I am using a feature film I have written and directed titled “Don't Read This on a Plane”, which was filmed in 10 countries, produced on a budget of A$125,000 including all post-production, fees, and deliverables, and has been acquired for international distribution. I argue that by practicing pragmatism and bricolage, and by utilising a small professional crew who handle multiple roles, a microbudget filmmaker is able to transcend financial limitations. To support my argument, I detail my lived experience as a filmmaker from the project's conception in 2016 to its completion in 2020. In additional to describing my roles as the film's writer, co-financer, co-producer, director, editor, composer, and sound mixer, I also outline the involvement of key crew members. “Don't Read This on a Plane” embodies my tacit understanding of pragmatism and bricolage, and this paper shares my demonstrable approach to microbudget filmmaking.
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"In this paper I question the conventional assumptions around photographic observation as a research method and begin to articulate a framing theory for its use as such in... more
"In this paper I question the conventional assumptions around photographic observation as a research method and begin to articulate a framing theory for its use as such in design that privileges abstraction over realism. This in turn leads to sketching out a rudimentary sense of a phenomenological theory of photography. If you would like a free copy of the book this is from - Light Relief Part (II) - message me with you address or email me at <mark.roxburgh@newcastle.edu.au> It has some great essays on photography by Roslyn Diprose, Craig Bremner and others."
Research Interests: Photographs, Visual Anthropology, Photography, Phenomenology, Design Theory, and 10 moreDesign Research, Photography Theory, Visual Communication Theory, Philosophy of Photography, Documentary Photography, Visual Ethnography, Visual Ethnography (Research Methodology), Photography (Visual Studies), Visual Research Methods, and Intellect
Investigations into the role of theories and practices of observation and imaging is commonplace in a range of established intellectual endeavours. The potential of such investigations applied to photo-based image-making, in visual... more
Investigations into the role of theories and practices of observation and imaging is commonplace in a range of established intellectual endeavours. The potential of such investigations applied to photo-based image-making, in visual communication design, is significant, yet at this point, under realised. In this paper we advance the proposition that careful observation, in an iterative framework, is a necessary pre-condition for any intelligent and informed photo-imaging practice. We outline a curriculum approach that is premised on a process of research, concept development and project management, within a critical and iterative framework, using photo-observation as the key tool. In this scenario, photo-imaging is used to engage with the world and develop a knowledge of it that feeds into the development of the final outcome. In short, the (re)presentation or fashioning of the world— the central activity of design.
Research Interests: Design, Art, Photography, Design education, Design Research, and 14 morePhotography Theory, Visual Communication Theory, Visual Communication, Design thinking, Creative thinking, Ideation Phase, Future of the Book, Visual Communication in Design, Visual Research Methods, Critical Literacy, Visual Communication Design, Socially responsive communication, Visual Communications, and Print Communications
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This study reports on a series of changes involving collaboration and visualisation which were incrementally added to a first year design theory course taught at the university of Newcastle NSW. Theory teaching values explicit knowledge... more
This study reports on a series of changes involving collaboration and visualisation which were incrementally added to a first year design theory course taught at the university of Newcastle NSW. Theory teaching values explicit knowledge and focuses on analytical and critical thinking. It can be defined as a form of deductive reasoning in that it seeks to unearth that which exists, as determined through close analytical reading of research literature. Students who study visual communication design do so because of their interest in creativity and visual media. Creative thinking and tacit knowledge are highly valued. It would therefore seem that design studio teaching, with its reliance on creativity, tacit knowledge and inductive or abductive reasoning is misaligned with design theory teaching which values explicit knowledge and deductive reasoning. However, this paper will argue that student learning of theory can be enhanced through the incorporation of working methods commonly use...
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This article seeks to explore the social and negotiated nature of design practice through an analysis of conversations held between clients and designers working on visual communication projects. Of specific interest will be the way in... more
This article seeks to explore the social and negotiated nature of design practice through an analysis of conversations held between clients and designers working on visual communication projects. Of specific interest will be the way in which these conversational participants try to control the outcomes of these conversations through the strategies of rhetorical substitution and subject positioning. I will argue that by regulating access to conversational codes these participants seek to regulate the boundaries of inclusion and exclusion in the decision making process in an attempt to legitimate their authority. Thus the design process can be seen as producing a material outcome as well as a set of social relations both of which are inherently ideological.
Research Interests: Computer Science, Design, Art, Design education, Conversation Analysis, and 15 moreGraphic Design, Design Theory, Design Research, Design Innovation, Negotiation, Visual Communication, Design thinking, Creative thinking, Ideation Phase, Future of the Book, Critical Literacy, Visual Communication Design, UTS, Socially responsive communication, and Print Communications
Our everyday life is influenced by an overproduction of images and by an iconogenic surplus that is connected to the proliferation of media. These contribute to both the quality and quantity of communication, but simultaneously amplify... more
Our everyday life is influenced by an overproduction of images and by an iconogenic surplus that is connected to the proliferation of media. These contribute to both the quality and quantity of communication, but simultaneously amplify the knowledge gap between an audience that is able to critically process messages and another that is affected uncritically by prejudices and stereotypes. The need for a critical “media education” (Bellino 2010) is required to address this gap by encouraging the development of students' critical thinking and social awareness. In this paper we will discuss the results of a didactic experiment in which visual communication design students explored the potential of metaphor to critique the role of media in perpetuating cultural stereotypes. Where stereotype simplifies reality, metaphor extends beyond the simplification of reality toward the discovery of new communicative opportunities; here the link between ethics and esthetics is reinforced. To supp...
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Over the past 20 years there has been an increase in post-secondary visual communication education in Australia while the growth of the industry itself has been low, meaning an increasing number of graduates compete for a limited pool of... more
Over the past 20 years there has been an increase in post-secondary visual communication education in Australia while the growth of the industry itself has been low, meaning an increasing number of graduates compete for a limited pool of jobs1. The use of visualisation in human centered and service design approaches provides alternative employment opportunities for these graduates. This paper presents a case study of a visual communication honors research project that is indicative of those opportunities and the potential benefits of having highly skilled visual practitioners involved in human centered and service design processes. Furthermore, we argue that a consideration of the aesthetics of the visualisation methods used in this context is essential and that visual aesthetics should be a significant part of the service design skillset.
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INTRODUCTION Design, and more specifically design research, in taking what we call the ethnographic turn, has adopted many research techniques from the allied disciplines of anthropology and sociology. In this chapter we present the case... more
INTRODUCTION Design, and more specifically design research, in taking what we call the ethnographic turn, has adopted many research techniques from the allied disciplines of anthropology and sociology. In this chapter we present the case that this turn, while attractive to the discovery of the user and their experience, has occurred with little consideration for the fundamentally different enterprises that are ethnography and design. We look specifically at the use of photo-observation and note that its use is generally premised on the notion that the photograph is evidence. We argue that by viewing the photograph as ethnographic evidence we accept it on its own conditions and consequently it conditions us to see the world-as-is. However, design is concerned with what-mightbecome, and this conditioning is problematic for it results in the endless reproduction of the here-and-now. With specific reference to one of the author’s research projects we will demonstrate that if we regard t...
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Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour, Kittler,... more
Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour, Kittler, Manovich Thibodeau, Bolter and Grusin and others) the article addresses the question: what is the media theory context of hybrid media? This theoretical sketch covers media extensions, the materiality of media, psychotechnologies, and networks. Media hybrid processes are identified across these layers, both in historical context and within the operation of digital media, remediation, and softwarization. Finally, the hybridization of media design through deep remixing hints at the fluidity of design practice. Overall, media hybridity challenges the entrenched notion of separation of media. Hybridization ripples across all layers of media—material, logical, and cultural/artistic.
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A motion comic combines artwork, panels and narrative from comic books with affordances from animation, film, graphic design, sound design and interactivity and is commonly referred to in the literature as a “hybrid medium,” a “medium in... more
A motion comic combines artwork, panels and narrative from comic books with affordances from animation, film, graphic design, sound design and interactivity and is commonly referred to in the literature as a “hybrid medium,” a “medium in between.” Motion comic production can be located within the broader industry tendency for media forms and their associated languages to fluidly recombine. This paper aims to understand the creative space of the motion comic in terms of media hybridity. Drawing on literature from motion comic scholarship, industry discussion, critical reviews and analysis of motion comic exemplars, the paper presents a theoretical explication of the hybrid media context of motion comics as a type of narrative motion graphics. The analysis concludes that the motion comic occupies an ambiguous space in terms of media modalities, aesthetics, literacy and critical reception and is symptomatic of the underlying attributes of software-induced hybridization of traditional media.
Research Interests: Media Studies, Animation, Animation Theory, Comics Studies, Intermedia, and 11 moreComics, Media Theory, Comics and Graphic Novels, Motion Graphics, Hybrid Media, Media and Communication Studies, Communication and media Studies, Media theory and Research, Mass Communication and Media Studies, Motion Comics, and Motion Comics and Hybrid Media
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This paper presents demonstrable insights from the creation of a microbudget feature-length narrative drama film with high production values. As a case study, I am using a feature film I have written and directed titled “Don't Read... more
This paper presents demonstrable insights from the creation of a microbudget feature-length narrative drama film with high production values. As a case study, I am using a feature film I have written and directed titled “Don't Read This on a Plane”, which was filmed in 10 countries, produced on a budget of A$125,000 including all post-production, fees, and deliverables, and has been acquired for international distribution. I argue that by practicing pragmatism and bricolage, and by utilising a small professional crew who handle multiple roles, a microbudget filmmaker is able to transcend financial limitations. To support my argument, I detail my lived experience as a filmmaker from the project's conception in 2016 to its completion in 2020. In additional to describing my roles as the film's writer, co-financer, co-producer, director, editor, composer, and sound mixer, I also outline the involvement of key crew members. “Don't Read This on a Plane” embodies my tacit u...
This paper reports on a series of research projects undertaken over several years by groups of visual communication design students with the Customer Experience (CX) team at Westpac Bank, Australia's second largest bank by market... more
This paper reports on a series of research projects undertaken over several years by groups of visual communication design students with the Customer Experience (CX) team at Westpac Bank, Australia's second largest bank by market capitalisation. The premise for running these projects was simple "what value could the visualisation and research skills of visual communication designers bring to the CX design process?" In reporting on these projects the authors argue that the problem solving model of design is increasingly redundant in service economies although note it is a pragmatic way of describing the complexity of design scenarios. More significantly the authors argue that with the growing trend in the use of visualisation techniques, for research and communication in service enterprises, that visual communication design is now the meta design discipline.
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This study presents and discusses the outcomes of an action research inquiry that set out to enhance novice first year visual communication student learning of design theory and history through the incorporation of creative practice... more
This study presents and discusses the outcomes of an action research inquiry that set out to enhance novice first year visual communication student learning of design theory and history through the incorporation of creative practice methods commonly used in practical design studio environments. The methods involving creative thinking, visualization, collaboration and presenting to an audience are described as interventions, introduced to support the critical and analytical thinking necessary to engage with theoretical discourse. They can also be thought of as learning strategies incorporated to enhance student learning. As educators of both design theory and practice, our previous observations of how novice design students engaged with theory, in comparison to how they engaged with practice, led us to the decision that change was required; change which would facilitate deeper understanding of theoretical discourse through the incorporation of creative practice methods. That was our ...
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This study presents and discusses the outcomes of an action research inquiry that set out to enhance novice first year visual communication student learning of design theory and history through the incorporation of creative practice... more
This study presents and discusses the outcomes of an action research inquiry that set out to enhance novice first year visual communication student learning of design theory and history through the incorporation of creative practice methods commonly used in practical design studio environments. The methods involving creative thinking, visualization, collaboration and presenting to an audience are described as interventions, introduced to support the critical and analytical thinking necessary to engage with theoretical discourse. They can also be thought of as learning strategies incorporated to enhance student learning. As educators of both design theory and practice, our previous observations of how novice design students engaged with theory, in comparison to how they engaged with practice, led us to the decision that change was required; change which would facilitate deeper understanding of theoretical discourse through the incorporation of creative practice methods. That was our ...
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Roxburgh, Mark. Cara Law's Floating Life and Australian Indentity [online]. Metro Magazine: Media & Education Magazine, No. 110, 1997: 3-6. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary... more
Roxburgh, Mark. Cara Law's Floating Life and Australian Indentity [online]. Metro Magazine: Media & Education Magazine, No. 110, 1997: 3-6. Availability: <http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary ;dn=719517278073031;res=IELHSS> ISSN: 0312-2654. [cited 04 Feb 10].
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RMIT Training Pty Ltd (ACN 006 067 349) of Kay House, Level 3, 449 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Victoria, trading as RMIT Publishing (the Publisher) grants you, the User, access to the text of the selected and purchased copyright works... more
RMIT Training Pty Ltd (ACN 006 067 349) of Kay House, Level 3, 449 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Victoria, trading as RMIT Publishing (the Publisher) grants you, the User, access to the text of the selected and purchased copyright works included in the INFORMIT PAY-...
Research Interests:
Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour, Kittler,... more
Contemporary media are characterized by fluidity and remixing of hitherto separated media formats creating unstable hybrids such as the motion comic. By reviewing canonical media theory literature (McLuhan, Castells, Latour,
Kittler, Manovich Thibodeau, Bolter and Grusin and others) the article addresses the question: what is the media theory context of hybrid media? This theoretical sketch covers media extensions, the materiality of media, psychotechnologies, and networks. Media hybrid processes are identified across these layers, both in historical context and within the operation of digital media, remediation, and softwarization. Finally, the hybridization of media design through deep remixing hints at the fluidity of design practice. Overall, media hybridity challenges the entrenched notion of separation of media. Hybridization ripples across all layers of media—material, logical, and cultural/artistic.
Kittler, Manovich Thibodeau, Bolter and Grusin and others) the article addresses the question: what is the media theory context of hybrid media? This theoretical sketch covers media extensions, the materiality of media, psychotechnologies, and networks. Media hybrid processes are identified across these layers, both in historical context and within the operation of digital media, remediation, and softwarization. Finally, the hybridization of media design through deep remixing hints at the fluidity of design practice. Overall, media hybridity challenges the entrenched notion of separation of media. Hybridization ripples across all layers of media—material, logical, and cultural/artistic.
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This is the pre-press draft of my book chapter of the same name in Rodgers, P. & Bremner, C. (eds) Design School: After Boundaries and Disciplines. Wilmington: Vernon Press. pp 59-67. ISBN 1622735862 This is a polemical piece that argues... more
This is the pre-press draft of my book chapter of the same name in Rodgers, P. & Bremner, C. (eds) Design School: After Boundaries and Disciplines. Wilmington: Vernon Press. pp 59-67. ISBN 1622735862
This is a polemical piece that argues that formal education is broken and cannot be fixed and that this has implications for design eduction. Perhaps more significantly I argue that the core subject matter of design education should be about ourselves and our relation to the world we inhabit and transform.
This is a polemical piece that argues that formal education is broken and cannot be fixed and that this has implications for design eduction. Perhaps more significantly I argue that the core subject matter of design education should be about ourselves and our relation to the world we inhabit and transform.
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Digital automation, particularly that which relies on AI and machine learning, is driving rapid advances in visual communication design practice. Below is our recent review of extant literature on the topic, which reveals a scarcity of... more
Digital automation, particularly that which relies on AI and machine learning, is driving rapid advances in visual communication design practice. Below is our recent review of extant literature on the topic, which reveals a scarcity of material, suggesting the design industry and design education are ill prepared for a seismic shift in work practices. This is intended to act as a primer for the Robot Ate My Homework Conversation as part of DRS2020, where participants will be asked to respond to the following questions:
1. How well prepared is the design profession for automation?
2. What kind of design work is vulnerable to automation?
3. What kind of skills will designers need to work with automation?
4. What should curriculum look like to ensure graduates won’t be replaced by machines?
5. Does current curriculum address questions 3 and 4 and if so how?
1. How well prepared is the design profession for automation?
2. What kind of design work is vulnerable to automation?
3. What kind of skills will designers need to work with automation?
4. What should curriculum look like to ensure graduates won’t be replaced by machines?
5. Does current curriculum address questions 3 and 4 and if so how?