Why Draw?

Drawing Ethnographic Fieldnotes

Carol Hendrickson

$54.99

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

University of Toronto Press
15 September 2025

Drawing & drawings; Anthropology

In Why Draw?, Carol Hendrickson explores the potential of drawing within the context of ethnographic fieldwork. The book aims to inspire readers to immerse themselves in the generative process of thinking while seeing while drawing.

To foster visual thinking and encourage experimentation, Hendrickson discusses a range of case studies that show the possibilities of drawing in the field and thinking through the resulting drawings. Richly illustrated, the book focuses on current theoretical and methodological considerations in the social sciences, including semiotic issues of representation and indexicality, embodiment and the senses, affect, collaboration, and temporality. Chapters are supplemented with exercises, practical advice, and short interludes that provide inspiration.

At its heart, Why Draw? asks readers to create visual notes in new and different ways; contemplate a range of contemporary issues through the act of drawing; and explore the potential of drawing to act as a bridge between fieldwork and finished works destined for public presentation.

By: Carol Hendrickson
Imprint: University of Toronto Press
Country of Publication: Canada
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm, Spine: 25mm
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9781487556594
ISBN 10: 1487556594
Pages: 240
Publication Date: 15 September 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

1. Introduction What to Take: Materials for Drawing in the Field 2. Representing the World: Iconicity A Drawing Event 3. Being There: Indexicality Visual Practices in Place 4. Embodiment, Movement, and the Senses The Artist’s Body 5. The Force of Visual Fieldnotes: Affect The Notebook as Lyrical Museum 6. Drawing Near: Company, Conversation, and Collaboration Explorations in Visual Fieldwork Methods 7. About Time: Temporalities and Sequences Artists’ Books, Bookworks, and Book-Objects 8. Conclusion Bibliography Index

Carol Hendrickson was professor of anthropology at Marlboro College and is now professor emerita at Emerson College.

Reviews for Why Draw?: Drawing Ethnographic Fieldnotes

“This book is not just for those who know and care about art and cultural politics in Yugoslavia...The real value in the book is the explicit analysis of the western bourgeois conception of art, it’s supposed counter in actually existing socialism, and the gradual erosion of the pay and conditions of art workers according to national political imperatives and rapidly shifting geopolitical trends. As such, it deserves a large and diverse audience and seems set to have a long shelf-life and value beyond the current systemic polycrisis.” -- Jon Blackwood, Gray’s School of Art, Robert Gordon University * <em>Left Art Review</em> * “It is here that the main strength of Praznik’s book lies: in Praznik’s unwavering commitment to leaving no ideological stone unturned and to demystifying even the dearest stories told by and to artists as well as by and to art appreciators.” -- Andrija Filipovic, Singidunum University * <em>H-Net Reviews (H-Socialisms)</em> *