Associate Professor Dr Scott McMaster

Associate Professor Dr Scott McMaster

  • Associate Professor
Department of Creative Design
  • School of Architecture and Design
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
SDGs Focus

Biography

Scott R. McMaster, an award-winning international artist and researcher, has cultivated a dynamic 20-year career in contemporary image-making. His work, celebrated in prestigious venues across Asia, Canada, the US, and Europe, features acclaimed projects such as “The Accidental Self” and “Hong Kong Obscura”, showcased at venues including KLPA Photo Awards, Trieste Photo Days, and Singapore Art Week. His insightful research into Hong Kong’s precolonial Hakka visual culture, funded by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council, and ground-breaking PhD research, awarded the highest accolade in his field, unveils new perspectives on global visual culture in a networked world, showcasing his profound engagement with cultural narratives and digital-era global issues.

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Academic & Professional Qualifications

  • PhD in Art Education-Visual Culture, Concordia University, Canada (2016)
  • Master of Education Information Technology, Memorial University Newfoundland, Canada (2010)
  • Bachelor of Fine Arts Photography-Multimedia, Memorial University Newfoundland, Canada (2000)

Research Interests

  • Visual Culture
  • Photography & Moving Image
  • Sensory Studies

Courses Taught

  • Professional Practices & Ethics
  • Photography
  • Major Research Project
  • Contemporary Digital Practices

Notable Publications

  1. McMaster, S. R. (2025).  No heritage found on map:  The vanishing villages of Hong Kong. Visual Studies, 1–17. 

     

  2. McMaster, S. R., Park, S. J., & Seo, S. H. (2024).  Sensory Research Series. Inje University Press: Kimhae, South Korea.  ISBN 978-89-6620-200-3.

     

  3. McMaster, S. R. (2022).  Hong Kong Obscura.  In Urban Unveils the City and Its Secrets - Vol.  08. dotART / Exhibit  Around  APS, Trieste:  Italy.

     

  4. McMaster, S. R. (2020).  Light at Street Level. In Chromantic:  A Collective Tribute to Alex Webb, pp.  146, 318, 552, 555, 557, 579. Trieste:  Italy.

     

  5. McMaster, S. R. (2018).  Crowdsourcing Global Culture:  Visual Representation in the Age of Information. Visual Arts Research, 44(2), 53 66. 

     

  6. McMaster, S. R. (2017).  Truth in Photography or:  How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Press the Shutter. The International Journal of the Image,&Բ;8(2),&Բ;77–98.&Բ;

     

  7. McMaster, S. R. (2016).  Crowdsourced Representation:  People’s Drawings of Culture in a Globalized World.  In Emergent Art Education in Canada, pp.  56–66. Canadian Society for Education through Art:  Victoria, BC.

     

  8. McMaster, S. R. (2015).  Visualizing Research:  Crowd Sourcing Technology for Global Understanding. Visual Methodologies, 3(1).

Achievements & Accolades

1. No Heritage Found on Map, the Vanishing Villages of Hong Kong, Hong Kong  Research  Grants Council,  Early  Career  Research  Scheme:  Funded  project  on visual culture  and heritage,  HKD $579,299, 2019–2023.

2. The Accidental Self, Kuala Lumpur Portrait Awards finalist, Temu House, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2023

3.  Singapore Art Week. The Art of Creative Research Exhibition, NIE Art Gallery, Singapore 2023

4.  Hong Kong Obscura: Pinhole photography project exhibited at URBAN 2022, Museo del Territorio, Cormons, Italy, 2022.

5.   Six in Seven: Hong Kong Labour at Street Level, Rotterdam International Photography Festival, Netherlands, 2020

6. Crowdsourcing Global Culture: Visual Representation in the Age of Information, Elliot Eisner Doctoral Research Award, National Art Education Association, 2017.

Professional Associations

1.  International Visual Sociology Association (IVSA), Member

2.  International Visual Literacy Association (IVLA), Communications Coordinator (2015–2019), Technology and Social Media Director (2012–2019), Consultant (2020–2021)

3.  Society for Hong Kong Studies (SHKS), Member

4.  International Society of Education in the Arts (InSEA), Member

5.  National Art Education Association (NAEA), Member

6.  Canadian Society of Education through Art (CSEA), Member