Dr Ruth Brolly

Overview

Dr Ruth Brolly is a Researcher and Lecturer in Graphic Design and Illustration. She is a graphic designer, magazine, newspaper and corporate designer, researcher, writer and lecturer. She obtained a BA(Hons) Degree in Design from Ulster University in 1991, after which time she worked in graphic design studios and the publication industry for 20 years, in Northern Ireland and throughout the UK, as Graphic Designer, Design Editor and Art Director.

Ruth has been lecturing at Ulster University since 2011 (part-time then full time), published a PhD (2015) and has authored a number of research outputs both nationally and internationally. Her research interests include graphic design, typography, lettering, signage and the built environment. Ruth is a fellow of the Royal Society for Arts (RSA), Associate member of the Higher Education Academy (AHEA) and member of the Institute of Designers Ireland (IDI).

Research outputs include:

• Manifesto for ‘spirit of place’: the expressive value of signage on Belfast’s arterial routes in representing wider environmental and societal themes. 2017, MEI, Design et Communication. Paris, France: L’Harmattan, Vol. 40. p. 77-101. Book chapter.
• Signs of a city: semiotic markers at odds with constructed narratives in Belfast. 2017, In: AMPS Proceedings Series. Series 10, p. 283-296. Conference, journal article.
• Fracturing the urban: symbolic representations of underlying societal themes in Belfast. 2016, CUI '16 / 4th International Contemporary Urban Issues Conference. DAKAM , Vol. 2. p. 60-83. Conference, journal article.
• Virtual Reality: this is not a shopfront. 2016, City Street 2. Notre Dame University, conference, journal article.
• Graphic degeneration/regeneration: the stark contrast of graphic forms in Belfast's interface areas. 2015, Face Forward Typography Conference, Dublin.
• Beyond the Obvious: A visual textual analysis of the value of commercial signs. 2013, Research Conference, University of Wolverhampton.
• 5 arterial routes & 1000 commercial signs. Exhibition, Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival, 2015.