News & Events

The BILQIS ERC Project, Irish Centre for Human Rights, School of Law, University of Galway will host a workshop series ‘Using creative methodologies in social research’. 

 With Dr Letizia Bonnano and Liza Caruana-Finkel 

Date: 13 February 2025 

Time: 10.30 am – 3.00pm 

Venue: CA239d Collaborative Room, J.E. Cairnes School of Business & Economics 

Registration is required, please find the link here. Light lunch will be provided on the day.

The workshop will aim to explore methodologies of doing qualitative social sciences research in a creative manner. These series also aim to introduce the potential of such methods in understanding current social problems, including social justice, climate crisis, gender and sexuality, peace and conflicts, to postgraduate students, early career researchers and academics interested in the above topics.  

The workshop draws on the works of Dr Letizia Bonnano on graphic ethnography and Liza Caruana-Finkel on embroidery as a creative method of feminist research practice. 

BIOS 

Dr Letizia Bonanno earned her PhD in Social Anthropology from the University of Manchester in 2019. Since then, she has held teaching and research positions at various British universities. For her doctoral research and ESRC postdoctoral fellowship, she focused on issues of care, the state, and kinship in austerity-stricken Greece. In September 2024, Letizia joined the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Vienna, where she is also an affiliated researcher with RECET. She is currently working on her new research project, tentatively titled Steel Life, which explores industrial labour and post-industrial futures in Taranto (Italy) and Galați (Romania). For this project, she has been awarded the SEED Grant by the University of Vienna and the Post-PhD Research Grant by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. Letizia has actively contributed to scholarly debates on graphic anthropology. She has written about its methodological and epistemological potential and has published several research articles in a comic format. 

 Liza Caruana-Finkel is a researcher-activist with an interest in reproductive (in)justice, mainly focused on abortion in the context of Malta. She is currently completing her PhD at the University of Liverpool, which explores abortion stigma through creative methods and group discussions. Beyond academia, Liza is involved in the Maltese abortion rights movement, and volunteers with UK-based organisations that help people access abortions and address abortion stigma. 

Since this will be an interactive workshop, the number of participants will be limited, and attendance will be made on a first-come, first-served basis. 

For further inquiries you can contact: bilqis@universityofgalway.ie

 Workshops

The graphic in the ethnographic, or how to engage in graphic modes of storytelling - Dr Letizia Bonnano: 

 Graphic ethnography is a methodological and representational approach that integrates visual media—particularly drawing and illustration—into social sciences research and communication. I will discuss the potential of what I call "ethnographic comics" (visual storytelling based on ethnographic material) to enable the analysis and presentation of data in ways that move beyond traditional written text. Through the creative interplay of textual and visual elements, comics enhance accessibility, foster creativity, and engage diverse audiences. As such, they hold great potential not only as tools for engagement and dissemination but also as powerful modes of storytelling. Ultimately, they invite us to reimagine ethnography as a creative and political practice, deeply rooted in the complexities and contradictions of everyday life.  

In this workshop, I will explore how drawing comics can serve as primary tools for observation and analysis. Participants will engage in practical exercises to conceptualise and craft stories based on their research projects and ethnographic material. These exercises will not only help sharpen visual thinking but also develop creative strategies to translate research into comics while enhancing their poetic and political dimensions. 

Stitching abortion: creative methods as feminist research practice - Liza Caruana Finkel 

 Malta has one of the most restrictive abortion legislations in the world. Despite recent shifts in public discourse and social attitudes, abortion remains a stigmatised topic in Malta, with mis- and disinformation spread through various channels and a persistent focus on sensationalism. When abortion stigma is prevalent, there may not be space for dialogue outside of political, media, and activist spheres, which can be polarised and intense. 

 Grounded in feminist values, my experimental doctoral project is focused on the politics and practices of engaging the socio-cultural aspect of abortion in Malta. Through the formation of collective spaces and the use of creative methods, this research project takes a different methodological turn to examining abortion. It explores how stigma impacts on women’s understanding of abortion, how knowledge is produced and transformed through the collective, and the role of creative methods in narrative formation. 

This session will be part presentation and part workshop, with attendees inhabiting a dual role: as audience members and as active participants. Drawing from participants of my empirical study – which included focus group discussions within a workshop setting – I will present findings and reflections on the use of creative methods to engage with abortion beyond the spoken word. In addition, I will facilitate a workshop on abortion stigma, mirroring the methods used in my PhD project. This will be a condensed version of the workshop in which embroidery was used alongside verbal conversations. 

 Against the backdrop of restrictive laws and societal conservativism, bringing people together to talk and creatively interact with abortion is an act of resistance and transgression. 

 Note: In the interest of time, it would be helpful if you could familiarise yourself with at least one basic stitch to use on the day, such as: running stitch, back stitch, split stitch. Please feel free to use whichever stitch/es you prefer and/or are familiar with during the workshop!