RtD Comics: A Medium for Representing Research Through Design

This paper argues that comics are a powerful and valuable medium for representing research through design. We review different formats for representing design including the academic paper, the photo-essay and the annotated portfolio. We argue that the comic book form can be better suited to representing various aspects of the design process including interaction, form and aesthetics. We illustrate our argument with examples taken from a comic book about the design of Paper Street View, an interactive system, which allows users to navigate Google Street View with a paper map and brass marker. We argue that comics are well suited to capturing the dynamic process of making, the dialogue and different viewpoints that contribute to interdisciplinary work as well as the interactive and aesthetic elements of a final design.