UCLA

Augmented Fotonovelas draw upon the aesthetic of traditional fotonovelas, but incorporate new technologies--such as video interviews, interactive mapping, smart phone technology, and Augmented Reality (AR). Augmented Fotonovelas also make the most of the classic form, utilizing photographs, text, and bubble captions. Through this methodology, new and old come together to produce Augmented Scholarship. I define Augmented Scholarship as knowledge production bridging the gap between communities of color and the academy, where researchers and communities draw on creative research and traditional research methods to produce alternative narratives that reveal erased histories that are seen and heard using AR. As a decolonial research method, Augmented Fotonovelas privilege the voices of the community, thus amplifying their knowledge and experiences in ways that are accessible to both the community and the academy. Chicana/o scholars can draw on this method to produce Augmented Scholarship with the power to inform, educate, raise public consciousness, elicit community action, and social change.