Allan A. Martell

Assistant Professor · Department of Information & Library Science · Indiana University · allmarte@iu.edu

Allan A. Martell, Ph.D. (he/him) is an assistant professor at the Department of Information and Library Science at the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering at Indiana University. Martell's work lies at the intersection of memory studies, museum studies, and interactions design. His goal is to develop a design framework to study social memories of historical episodes of violence, such as dictatorships, genocides, or civil wars. His goal is to support ngoing efforts in civil society and cultural heritage institutions to redressing victims and promoting redistributive justice in post-conflict societies.

Martell's research agenda revolves along three themes :

1) Exploring how design decisions shape the ways people remember historical episodes of violence,
2) Envisaging design frameworks to support critical, nuanced interpretations of such memories,
3) Understanding the challenges of cultural heritage workers in their work with victims, objects, and records linked to those memories.

Experience

Postdoctoral Researcher

School of Library and Information Science, Louisiana State University

Collaborated with the Virtual Footlocker project (FVP) in data collection, analysis, writing papers, presenting at conferences, and developing trainings for archivists and military veterans based on research findings.

August 2020 - August 2022

Research Assistant

School of Information, University of Michigan

Developed the online interface of the archival site of the Unfinished Sentences project (2014-2020). The public side of the archive was eventually moved to a youtube channel. I also worked on a research project exploring the interplay between museum exhibition design and social memory.

September 2014 - August 2020

Digital Security Trainer

International Research and Exchanges Board

Trained most-at-risk journalists from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras in best practices on digital security. My work fell under the Secure Access to Freedom of Expression project (SAFE).

January 2013 - July 2014

Communications Officer

Communities United for Water and Agriculture

Produced radio and video documentaries as well as written reports.

January 2008 - July 2010

Education

University of Michigan

Doctorate of Philosophy
Information
September 2014 - August 2020

Georgia Institute of Technology

Master of Science
Digital Media
August 2010 - May 2012

Central American University

Bachelor of Arts
Social Communications
January 2003 - October 2008

Research

Publications
  • Martell, A. (Accepted). "The Genre of Love Me Binders: U.S. Military Veterans Documenting their Service." Archivaria, 95. Forthcoming in Spring 2023.
  • Martell, A. (In Press). "Postmemorial Exhibitions: An approximation to negotiate cultural trauma among grandchildren of ex refugees and former guerrilla members in El Salvador." In C. Lara (Ed.), Historical Memory and Sociocultural Transformation. UCA Editores.
  • Simioni, S., Martell, A., McDonald, Allison, & Abraham, Mhaidli. Designing Digital Literacy and Security Trainings for Latinx Immigrants in the United States. 3rd SOUPS Workshop on Inclusive Privacy and Security (WIPS). 2018, August 12-14. Baltimore, MD, USA. Workshop Paper.
Presentations
  • Martell, A. (Author, Presenter, and Panel Chair): Panel: In Dialogue with Truama. Presentation: “Memories of the Exodus: Locating a Memory Community in Oral History Records.” Memory and Trauma Working Group, Memory Studies Association. Annual Meeting 2022. Online (July 12, 2022).
  • Martell, A. (Author & Presenter). 4S 2019 New Orleans: Innovations, Interruptions, Regenerations. “Memory Labor and Nostalgia: When a Technology of Resistance Becomes a Tool for Control.” Society for the Social Studies of Science (4S). New Orleans, Louisiana, United States (September 6, 2019).
  • Martell, A. (Author & Presenter). Third Annual Conference of the MSA 2019. “The Negotiation of Collective Remembering Through the Production of Museum Exhibits.” Annual Meeting of the Memory Studies Association (MSA). Madrid, Spain (June 28, 2019).
  • Martell, A. (Author & Presenter). Ethics and Archiving the Web 2018. “Community-Based Participatory Research: Towards a Participatory Framework for Research on Community Archives.” The New Museum, New York, New York, United States (March 23, 2018).
  • Martell, A. (Author & Presenter). The 7th AERI Conference on Archival Education. “Memories from the Left: Leveraging Oral History Records to Examine Collective Memory of Former Revolutionaries.” Archival Education and Research Initiative (AERI), College Park, Maryland, United States (July 15, 2015).

Interests

When I'm not writing papers or teaching, I can be found on the trails of bloomington running or riding my bike. Every now and then I try new recipies in the kitchen.

While indoords I'm an avid fantasy "reader" and an interactive art enthusiast. I mostly listen to audiobooks. At this time, my favorite podcasts are Code Switch (NPR) and In Our Time (BBC).

Blog

  • 19 Feb 2024 » Accepted to the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Memory Studies Association!
  • 17 Apr 2020 » What COVID-19 can tell us about memory
  • 03 Apr 2020 » Cultural Trauma and Design
  • 01 Apr 2020 » CGI during my spare time
  • 14 Feb 2020 » I learned to use Jekyll
  • 23 Jan 2020 » On Cultural Trauma
  • 20 Jan 2020 » Accepted to the Annual Meeting of the Memory Studies Association!