Lecturer in Visual Culture

I studied philosophy and some of the philosophical bits of sociology at the University of York; I then studied the work of Derrida and other French philosophers for a Ph.D. at the University of Warwick. Ever since I have been trying to account for the conditions, nature and consequences of visual culture in a way that does not offend or otherwise fall foul of all I learned from Derridean philosophy and hermeneutic sociology. This means that I try to explain why fashion, graphic design and other examples of visual culture look the way they do by using concepts such as meaning, communication, identity, culture, society, power and economics.

I have published a few things in these areas. Fashion as Communication (Routledge 2001) applies some of the central concepts of cultural studies and communication studies to the analysis and explanation of what we wear. It also critically analyses the role of what we wear in making us a 'we' or an 'us' in the first place. Graphic Design as Communication (Routledge 2005) does much the same things for graphic design, explaining packaging, typography, layouts, image, text and so on as ways in which social and cultural identities are constructed, communicated and contested. Approaches to Understanding Visual Culture (Palgrave 2001) outlines and assesses a wide range of disciplines and approaches that have been used to understand visual culture.

Fashion Theory (Routledge 2007) is a collection of other people's writings on thirteen topics or areas of fashion theory although I do provide introductions to all the writings and to the whole business of fashion, theory and fashion theory.

Currently working on a couple of fashion theory projects, (although retaining a very strong interest in graphics), I am happy to consider the supervision of postgraduate students in any area of visual culture who are not deterred by the above.

Email: M.Barnard@lboro.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1509 228969