Instructor
Ray concentrates on digital media and visual culture. His research includes using iconography to understand the resonances people express with pictures they share online and using machine learning as a tool for social media image research. His background includes nearly two decades of running a web development & graphic design firm, so when he lectures on visual themes, he takes care to note both techniques and technicalities that impact contemporary digital visual culture.
His personal passions include photography and music. He finds working with students very rewarding.
Courses Taught
- GBDA 101 Introduction to Digital Media Design
- GBDA 203 Introduction to Digital Culture
- GBDA 228 Digital Imaging of Online Applications
- GBDA 301 Global Digital Project 1
- GBDA 401 Cross-Cultural Digital Business
- GBDA 402 Capstone Course: Cross-Cultural Digital Business
- ARTS 290: Theories of Media
Education
- PhD (Visual Culture) Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University (UK), 2018
- MA (Information Studies) University of Sheffield (UK), 1996
- MA (History of Art) Princeton University (USA), 1995
- BA (History of Art) New College (USA), 1992
Research and Teaching Interests
- Digital media
- Visual culture
- Iconography (both historical and contemporary usage)
- Media theory
- Hermeneutics
Selected Publications (Scholarly and Outreach)
- (In Press) [with Jennifer Saul]. “Linguistic and Visual Dogwhistles”. In L. Anderson and E. Lepore (eds), Oxford Handbook of Applied Philosophy of Language, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Preprint available <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344441861_Visual_and_Linguistic_Dogwhistles>.
- (Forthcoming) [with Jennifer Saul]. “Deniability Devices and Misinformation”. In M. Popa (ed.), Mis/Disinformation and Other Epistemic Pathologies, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- (2023). “Digitally-Assisted Iconology: A Method for the Analysis of Digital Media”. In Studies In Communication Sciences. <https://doi.org/10.24434/j.scoms.2024.01.3888>.
- (2023). “Memetic Superposition: Evaluating the Parallels between Memes and Renaissance Emblems”. In 21: Beiträge zur Kunstgeschichte und visuellen Kultur. <https://doi.org/10.11588/xxi.2023.4.100739>
- (2022) [with Farida Vis]. “Elephant Motorbikes and Too Many Neckties: Epistemic Spatialization as a Framework for Investigating Patterns of Bias in Convolutional Neural Networks”. In AI & Society. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-022-01542-8 <https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-022-01542-8>
- (2018). “Iconography for the Age of Social Media”. In Humanities 7(1). http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/7/1/12/pdf <http://www.mdpi.com/2076-0787/7/1/12/pdf>
- (2018). [with An Xiao Mina]. “Trump has Twitter. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is Winning Instagram”. https://www.fastcompany.com/90259343/trump-has-twitter-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-is-winning-instagram <https://www.fastcompany.com/90259343/trump-has-twitter-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-is-winning-instagram>
- (2018). “Outraged by Kavanaugh Confirmation, Social Media Users Cite the Vengeful Women of Art History”. https://hyperallergic.com/465337/outraged-by-kavanaugh-confirmation-social-media-users-cite-the-vengeful-women-of-art-history/ <https://hyperallergic.com/465337/outraged-by-kavanaugh-confirmation-social-media-users-cite-the-vengeful-women-of-art-history/>
- (2016). “The Visual Propaganda of the Brexit Leave Campaign”. http://hyperallergic.com/310631/the-visual-propaganda-of-the-brexit-leave-campaign/ <http://hyperallergic.com/310631/the-visual-propaganda-of-the-brexit-leave-campaign/>
- (2015). “On the Iconology of Aylan Kurdi, Alone”. In: Vis, F. and Goriunova, O. (eds.) The Iconic Image on Social Media: A Rapid Research Response to the Death of Aylan Kurdi. pp. 47–49. Sheffield: Visual Social Media Lab. http://visualsocialmedialab.org/projects/the-iconic-image-on-social-media <http://visualsocialmedialab.org/projects/the-iconic-image-on-social-media>
Connect with Ray ray.drainville@uwaterloo.ca <mailto:ray.drainville@uwaterloo.ca>