Visual anthropology and the incorporation of the photovoice method as a tool to support and incorporate communities in research and qualitative work

Within the subfield of visual anthropology, photographies, along with other visual mediums such as videos, have been utilized by anthropologist to depict and provide a glimpse into the visual representation and decpitions of cultures. Historically, photovoice has been a research method that is particularly useful, engaging, and empowering for social groups disadvantaged by class, power, or status (Wang and Burris 1997; Pink 2011). I have incorporated the photovoice method to help center the voices and experiences of migrant and non-migrant trans individual who live in Valencia, Spain. The self-captured photos that members of these communities take are being highlighted and placed front and center of my research. Putting their voices at the forefront directly incorporates trans individuals’ lived experiences, knowledge, strategies, and insight whilst also incorporating a decolonial approach to integrating the community in social science research. The seminar will provide a glimpse into an overview of visual anthropology, the photovoice process and method, and provide a foundational understanding of how to incorporate visual qualitative tools into research and projects.

About Mirtha García

Mirtha Garcia is currently a Ph.D. Sociocultural Anthropology candidate in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. She is currently researching the experience of migrant and non-migrant trans individuals who are living in Spain to assist with creating policies and academic work that can help trans communities globally. She holds an M.A. in Visual Anthropology from the University of Southern California where she completed a 30-minute ethnographic film on trans Latina immigrant women’s identity, transnationally. She holds a B.A in Spanish with honors, B.A in Anthropology with honors, a minor in political science, and certificates in Latin American and International Studies, from Arizona State University. She is currently researching the experience of trans individuals living in Spain to assist with creating policies and academic work that can help trans communities. For her dissertation research, she is exploring the experiences, identities, and quality of life of trans individuals who were born in Spain or who have migrated there and how they navigate both the public sector and their private lives. She aims to conduct ethnographic fieldwork that employs semi-structured interviews, photovoice, participant observation, and archival work.