Abstract
In visual design practice, the bodies of superheroic figures often represent the ideal body elements positively favoured by the denizens in a society, rendering them with what is often termed as the “Reward Body”. Through generations, art practitioners have developed iconographies of the heroic characters based on preferences pertaining to the culture the heroic character emerged from. A major issue has been the momentous popularity of American superheroes among the international populace and their influence on local cultures, raising concerns around the sustainability of local cultural identity. To explore the influence of global media-backed American superheroes on localized cultures, this study chose the tribal group- Shabar Kharia, one of the most primitive tribes residing in West Bengal, India for the focus group investigation. The Shabar people are known to have deep connection with nature and fall under the Secondary Primitive Tribal Group (S-PGT). Such a sample was deemed favorable to understand the impact of the global heroic character designs on the perception of local culture denizens to avoid other biases. Through discussions with students and teachers from an educational institute in Sindri, Purulia, West Bengal, this investigation aimed to understand the perception of the Hero’s body and the employment of character highlights among the adolescents in such localized and marginalized communities at the onset of the increasing popularity of mainstream global superheroes through improved communication systems.
Presenters
Shreejit GuhaAssistant Professor, School of Design, UPES, Uttaranchal, India Debkumar Chakrabarti
Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati Varuna Semwal
Student, Phd, UPES , Uttarakhand, India
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Superhero, Character Design, Body representation, Local culture, Cultural Sustainability
