Sometime ago, I started referring a certain sect of my work as “visuatexts.”

It started out as a way of needing to file some of my work on my computer and I couldn’t find the right word. Words like “graphics,” “quotes,” “illustrations,” and “designs” didn’t seem to fully capture what I was trying to fit in this folder. Words like “art” and “images” felt too broad. And even though I often post my work on social media, it is not only an “Instagram post” because they often exists in other places such as art prints, stationery goods, and also, within the video games I’ve creating.

So, to try and solve this problem I typed “visuatexts”(combining “visuals” + “text” = visuatext) and thought, “Well, I will just call it this for now.” But it actually ending up sticking!

Visuals + texts = visualtexts.

To me, this is not the most creative name ever, which is exactly why I think it works. I’ve been making and sharing this kind of work for several years now and it feels satisfying and exciting to have its own little name for it.

Here’s a little bit about the concept of “visuatexts” and the qualities of these kind of pieces.

Visuatext Qualities

While visuatext shares qualities with other types of creativity, here are some distinctive attributes that I’ve been collecting, while making.

1. Interactive Process and Mutual Influence: The creation of new text can be informed by an image, and similarly, a piece of text can inspire an image. I might start with the image or I might start with the text, but in both cases, I am creating while considering how each component influences the other, and the piece is complete when they have effectively interacted. For example, in the hummingbird image mentioned earlier, after completing the digital painting and beginning the text, I realized the potential to convey themes of flying and resting. This realization led me to modify the painting to better align with the text, adding elements like the sun, sun rays, moon, and stars to reinforce these themes. Working with collage is also particularly helpful in making “visuatext” because it allows me to swiftly adjust and experiment with visual elements. With collage, I am able to rearrange, add, or remove pieces in response to the evolving text, making it easier to adapt the visual aspect as the textual narrative develops or changes. But whether I am working with collage or using an app like Photoshop, the final products, for me, come together underneath the term “ visuatext,” a concept that reflects the process of mutual influence and iterative development.

2. Non-linear Development: Neither visual elements nor textual content have to necessarily come first; they are developed together in no particular order. I am often asked this question: “Do you come up with the words or the art first?” I have given so many different answers! I used to think that this was just a reflection of a very inconsistent and scattered process and I considered this to be a negative thing. I used to feel like I had to come up with a more concrete explanation in order to be considered a “real artist.” However, I have since released myself from this pressure and embrace the fluid, non-linear process. Sometimes, I approach these pieces as if I am a designer –– thinking of a specific environment where this piece will belong before I even began coming up with ideas. This specific environment can be a fictional one that I created, or it can be something from a memory…such as, the empty wall beside my bed in my freshman dorm room. I “design” something for that space. Other times, I make works from a more “artistic” perspective, thinking first of a specific feeling that I am trying to express. This feeling can be reflected in a story someone shared with me or something I wrote about in my own journal long ago. When the works are done, sometimes they went through a “design” process and other times they went through more of an “art” process. Other times, it is even a scrap-booking or crafting process where I am just exploring different textures, materials, and found objects, playing with their arrangement and how they interact with text. In these moments, my focus is on the tactile and physical aspects of creation, enjoying the hands-on experience of assembling and layering various elements.

3. Flexibility Between Design and Art: "Visuatext" is a concept that fluidly navigates between the realms of design and art. “Design” often focuses on function, while “art” encompasses a broad range of activities and expressions. In my experience, “visuatext” has the unique ability to drift in and out of these realms, making it versatile and adaptable to various creative and expressive intentions. With “visuatext” there is no hierarchy when it comes to the visuals and the text. Even thought oftentimes, they can stand a part on their own, they still mutually strengthen and inform one another.

In short, visuatext is a product of a process. It is a dynamic blend of visual and textual elements, evolving through interaction and adaptation.

Comparing and Contrasting to Other Terms

1. Inspirational Quote Graphics: These graphics typically feature quotes that are excerpts from other sources or separately written. Personally, I have found it a bit challenging to create in this way. Even when I make pieces that an actual quote from something I’ve written, it is likely, by the time I start working on the visuals, that the text begins to change. Unlike "visuatexts," where visuals and text are developed simultaneously and influence each other, inspirational quote graphics often start with a pre-existing quote, and the visual element is created to complement or highlight it.

2. Ekphrastic Poetry: This form of poetry describes or comments on a visual art piece. While it shares with "visuatexts" the combination of textual and visual elements, in ekphrastic poetry, the text is usually a response to an already existing artwork, unlike "visuatexts" where text and visuals are created together, influencing each other in the process.

3. Conceptual Art: Conceptual art emphasizes the underlying ideas or concepts rather than aesthetic aspects. While "visuatexts" can align with conceptual art, especially when they embody specific conceptual ideas, the difference lies in the relationship between text and visuals. In conceptual art, text often contextualizes the concept, whereas in "visuatexts," text and visuals co-create the meaning.

4. Graphic Novels and Comics: Inspired by graphic novels and comics, "visuatexts" differ primarily in their structure and storytelling approach. While graphic novels and comics, as defined by Scott McCloud, involve sequential panels that tell a story, "visuatexts" often consist of single panels and do not necessarily follow a narrative in the traditional sense of graphic storytelling.

Why Another Term?

The short answer to why I felt the need to thoroughly investigate the possibility of a new term for myself is because I find it interesting and also gratifying.

I think it is easy for those working in digital spaces in particular to feel as though their work doesn’t have a place outside of the frame it’s been put in, such as Instagram, YouTube, or whatever platform it belongs to. However, even though I have shared my work on these platforms for years, it just hasn’t felt right to archive and file my work by the social networking service its been posted on. I don’t mind sharing it there, but my hope is that new words can help to multidimensionalize what often feels flattened in digital spaces (and for me this is especially true in social media).

Also, I think it can be especially impactful when an artist or creative coins a term for what they’re doing. It’s never too late to explore the possibility of new terminology. I’m thinking Faith Ringgold and “super realism,” Marcel Duchamp and Readymades, and so many others.

I recognize and accept that this term may overlap with other artistic concepts and terms, and I'm still exploring its applicability beyond my personal practice, however, if it happens to connect with anyone reading this, feel free to use it, too.

“Visuatexts" emphasizes the creative process - a process where the final product is fluid, especially in digital contexts, constantly evolving and adapting. This term, therefore, isn’t just a label; it's a reflection of an ongoing exploration.

- Morgan Harper Nichols