School of Art and Design - Te Kura Toi a Hoahoa
Permanent link for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10292/857
Research within the School of Art and Design brings together visual artists, spatial designers, fashion designers, filmmakers, curators, entrepreneurs, graphic designers, digital designers, product designers and other cultural practitioners from New Zealand and around the world to work on expanded notions of art and design through creative-led research. Their research disciplines and study areas include: Visual Arts, Graphic Design, Spatial Design, Product Design, Digital Design, Fashion and Textile Design, and across disciplines.
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Item Collaborative Efforts in Recent Performances and Participatory Artworks(Informa UK Limited, 2025-06-18) Braddock, C; Shingade, BThis essay considers collaborative methods from the perspective of an artist and a curator. Our reflections stem from within creative practice processes as a way of exploring modes of knowledge interactions, learning, and collaboration. We reflect on performances and participatory artworks that involve complex social interactions across their planning, making and realisation, and draw on conversations to reveal the volatility and changeability of artworks and curatorial strategies. We emphasise that collaborative, cooperative and participatory methods in visual arts projects are inextricably social and political. We discuss two visual arts performance and participatory projects–Invitation to Dialogue (2019) and Conversation Mat (2022) undertaken at AUT ST Paul St Gallery (renamed Te Wai Ngutu Kākā Gallery) in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, aimed at transforming the artistic, curatorial and participatory ego through an exploration of voice. In so doing, we question artistic, curatorial, and participatory ownership and/or dominance. We explore distinctions between project-time and use-time as a way of contrasting designed aspects of collaboration with those that go beyond the control of makers in risky ways. We draw attention to art/life orientations which generate many modes of collaboration. We discuss an attentiveness necessary for attending to the differing speeds of participants.Item Our Garden and its Waters: A Review of Derek Jarman: Delphinium Days (2024)(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-09-30) Wu, Jack***Item Aqueous Place in the Architecture of Luis Barragán: Dark Pink and Surface-Other(School of Art & Design, Auckland University of Technology, School of Architecture & Planning, University of Auckland, 2025-09-30) Wu, Jack; Douglas, AndrewStaged here are two parallel accounts of visits to houses by Luis Barragán—Casa Ortega (1940–42), and Casa-Estudio Luis Barragán (1947–48)—both sitting side-by-side in the ‘uphill’ neighbourhood of Tacubaya within Ciudad de México. The accounts, initially conceived of as a means of ‘describing’ divergent visitation experiences by the authors to each other, have expanded asymmetrically here: one (“Dark Pink”), taking the form of a prose poem; the other (“surface-Other”), enacting a wandering narrative partly carried by impressions/recollections and partly by academically inclined trails. Both acknowledge and aim to work within the touristic window that occasioned the visits. Together they amount to a form of travel chronical (at once truncated and dilatated) in which visitation contextualises itself within echoes of other visitors, writers, and commentators. In concert, if not in harmony, the accounts aim to distill the appearance, the feel, the implications (aesthetically, culturally, socially, and politically) of an aqueous underpinning to Barragán’s work. This underpinning is acknowledged as being partly fictional and partly essential.Item Evaluation of Using a Graphic Novel 'Vivian' in Nursing Curriculum From the Perspectives of Nurse Educators: A Three-Country Qualitative Study(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2025-10-24) Deshmukh, A; Gayton, A; Williams, L; Harstäde, CW; Nicol, J; Tavares, T; Waterworth, S; Anderson, N; Gott, M; Guo, PBackground: Graphic novels - full-length stories published in comic-strip format are a proven method for putting student nurses ‘into the shoes’ of health service users and offer nurse educators an alternative to traditional modes of instruction. Their use can support the teaching of palliative care related topics, which remains a challenge in nurse education. This study aimed to explore the views and perspectives of nurse educators about how the graphic novel Vivian could be used to prepare undergraduate nursing students for palliative care and beyond. Methods: Focus groups and individual interviews were conducted with 12 nurse educators at universities in the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Sweden and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four themes were generated: (1) impact of visual storytelling, (2) arts-based learning in palliative care, (3) refinement of the graphic novel, (4) recommendations about future graphic novels. Participants noted Vivian’s usefulness for teaching issues related to palliative care and the health care system, including gender inequities, ageing, and economic crises. Conclusions: There is scope to use arts-based learning when engaging audiences from diverse backgrounds. The educators stressed Vivian could help students think ‘outside of the box’ and stressed the importance of a teaching and learning approach that extended beyond textbooks to include other interactive forms. Future research is needed to adapt and refine the graphic novel by considering social and cultural contexts and evaluate how the graphic novel is implemented in nurse education across different settings and countries.Item Designing Ethical Research: A Framework for Working With Individuals, Groups and Communities(Open Science Framework, 2024-08-27) Reay, Stephen; Nakarada-Kordic, Ivana; Khoo, Cassie; Craig, Claire; Wilson, Denise; Kayes, NicolaItem Supervising Practice-Led Heuristic PhD Projects Integrating Creative Intuition and Artificial Intelligence(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-06-17) Najafi, Hossein; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosHeuristic inquiry, rooted in experiential and iterative exploration, plays a central role for both artistic research and artificial intelligence (AI) research. This article provides a guide for supervising PhD projects that incorporate heuristic inquiry in their creative and computational transdisciplinary contexts. Drawing on transdisciplinary literature and research examples, it addresses how supervisors can support students through to approach AI for their creative projects with an informed approach. Key topics include embracing uncertainty, heuristic iteration, intuitive problem-solving, supporting interdisciplinary learning, and navigating the epistemological challenges using heuristic methods. By mapping structural and methodological convergences between artistic and AI domains, this article aims to equip supervisors with adaptable tools to nurture complex, innovative, and practice-led doctoral projects.Item 'Asi: A Practice-led Inquiry Led By an Oceanic Artistic Research Paradigm(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-24) Faumuina, Cecelia; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents a practice-led PhD project investigating how Oceanic values and ways of knowing inform faiva (creative practice/performance) to engage, create māfana (warmth) and mālie (harmony), and manifest ‘asi (the presence of the unseen) in artistic expression among Oceanic youth. Wolfgramm (1993) identified ‘asi as a vital element in the climax of faiva, reflecting an energising spirit that gives agency to artistic work. This research examines how young Oceanic individuals collaborate creatively, drawing on cultural heritage values to create meaningful faiva, and how this process may activate ‘asi throughout performance. The study is structured around two key components. The first, Lila (2019), is a co-created project involving research participants who developed and presented a contemporary faiva. This case study is enriched by interviews with Oceanic youth leaders, providing insights into the role of ‘asi in artistic practice. The second component, FAIVA | FAI VĀ, is the researcher’s personal artistic synthesis, integrating spoken word poetry, sound, drawing, video design, and performance. This body of work reflects on ‘asi through autobiographical themes and poetic expressions. By interweaving these elements, the study explores the nature and agency of ‘asi, its significance in contemporary faiva, and its potential to resource creativity and foster belonging among Oceanic youth.Item Unveiling the Marvellous: A Practice-oriented Exploration of Realismo Maravilhoso(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-24) Tavares, Tatiana; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article outlines a practice-oriented, artistic research project that asks: What is the potential of an interactive digital narrative in exploring the interplay between story elements to examine the boundaries between reality and imagination within the framework of Realismo Maravilhoso? The design outcome, Saints of Paradox, is a printed picture book enhanced with AR (Augmented Reality) technology, allowing for multiple readings of a narrative through three distinctive syncretic narrators, or saints. These narrators reinterpret the story by altering both the illustrative content and monologue, shaping the narrative through polyvocality. Formatted as a series of pictorial sets in potentia, the book enables readers to scan pages with a mobile device, revealing animated characters within illustrated environments, accompanied by cinematic soundscapes. The work challenges the supremacy of a singular, authoritative truth, aligning with postcolonial critiques of absolutes and Bakhtin’s theories of polyphony and dialogism. Syncretism operates not only as a cultural reference to Brazilian traditions and religion but also as an artistic and narrative device that negotiates multiple perspectives within a parallax structure—both a technical and artistic mechanism. This research is framed within an artistic paradigm that employs a heuristic approach, integrating tacit and explicit knowledge in the development of the fictional narrative, its structure, and stylistic treatments. The methodology consists of designer’s journals, iterative assembly, overviewing and testing, and the strategic use of feedback. The project contributes to polyvocality and dialogical storytelling, expanding the possibilities of interactivity and immersion within a sequential, print-based format and fostering a distinctive transcultural narrative through practice.Item Connecting Communities: Curatorial Approaches in Collaborative Publication Design(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-24) Grieve, Fiona; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosTraditional editorial design frameworks often reinforce dominant narratives, limiting alternative perspectives and reducing cultural plurality. Standardised systems prioritise singular viewpoints, while overly flexible approaches risk losing coherence. This article examines how a co-design curatorial publishing model can support multivocality in editorial design. The study focuses on Threaded Magazine and its two-decade evolution in fostering practitioner-led inclusivity as the place of inquiry. It investigates how curatorial frameworks can maintain both visual coherence and diverse representation, addressing the challenges of balancing structure and inclusivity. As part of a doctoral qualification, this article documents the first year of a PhD practice-oriented 2 design research project, outlining its development through a key review and approval stage. The study employs two methodological frameworks: close reading, a literary analysis method used in the confirmation of candidature, and creative production, which integrates visualisation and prototyping in the thesis construction phase. The findings contribute to discussions on inclusive editorial design by reconsidering curatorial practice beyond traditional publishing models. Additionally, the study examines how a Māori and non-Māori collaborative framework informs bicultural partnerships in publication design, offering insights into relational and culturally responsive editorial strategies.Item Designing a Pictogram-Based Visual Language Tool for Self-Determination in Individuals with Complex Communication Needs: A Practice-based Research Approach(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-25) Spencer, Herbert; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis research focuses on developing PictoNet, a pictogram-based visual language system to support individuals with complex communication needs (CCN) in Chile and Aotearoa New Zealand. The project aims to improve self-determination and accessibility by creating a tool that connects textual and pictographic communication through an AI-assisted system. By embracing a practice-led research approach, the study combines visual communication, interaction design, and artificial intelligence to create an adaptive pictographic framework. It builds upon the PICTOS project in Chile, which addresses cognitive accessibility in public services through pictographic sequences and expands towards communication sovereignty within a universal design framework. The methodology includes collaboration with practitioners and Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) specialists and ethnographic fieldwork, interviews, and usability studies to evaluate existing pictographic systems. In PictoNet, artificial intelligence acts as a design material to help generate pictograms in AAC, allowing real-time adaptation to user needs while ensuring transparency and reversibility. PictoNet is envisioned as an open-source, federated system where collective contributions enrich the pictogram library, promoting collaborative visual communication. In addition to its technical contributions, this study examines the legitimacy of practice-led research within the academic framework, advocating for its significance alongside traditional scientific methods. The research emphasises design as a fundamental aspect of inquiry by recognising the importance of design knowledge and the complexities of visual language systems. Ultimately, this study aims to enhance inclusive communication and offers a new approach to augmentative and alternative communication in a world increasingly influenced by AI.Item Woven Silences: Reimagining shèng nǚ (‘Leftover Women’) through poetic interfaces between image, text, and silk printing.(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-25) Li, Qiainyin; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosIn traditional Chinese culture, there is a strong expectation for women to marry at a relatively young age. Women who remain unmarried beyond this age are labelled as 剩女 (shèng nǚ – ‘Leftover Women’). These women often experience social pressure and judgment from family, friends, communities and governing bodies. This pressure stems partly from cultural beliefs that prioritise traditional gender roles and the perceived responsibility to marry to ensure family lineage and social status. This article presents a PhD design project that investigates how illustration on silk and poetic writing can be employed to reconsider the derogatory concept of 剩女 (shèng nǚ – ‘Leftover women’). Building the author’s Master of Design thesis Dreams of a solo traveller 独行之梦 (Li, 2024), using visual design and storytelling, the research aims to present 剩女 (shèng nǚ) as a symbol of strength, courage, and autonomy. In the study, women are reimagined as individuals who prioritise personal growth, education, and careers, navigating societal pressures with independence. Employing a practice-led research methodology, the project utilises a range of artistic methods, including image-making on silk, poetic writing, journalling, and fieldwork conducted in China and New Zealand. Drawing on personal experiences of social pressure, the research seeks to redefine the label of the剩 剩女 (shèng nǚ), reframing the phenomenon as a source of women empowerment. The project contributes to an ongoing critique of individual autonomy and gender roles, focusing on the changing cultural expectations of women in modern China because it expands the discourse on gender, independence, and cultural identity in a society undergoing transformation.Item Immersive Photography as Practise-led Inquiry: Poetic Engagements with Landscape and Embodied Knowledge(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-25) Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents a practice-led doctoral research project that explores photography as an immersive and embodied form of inquiry. It examines how photographic practice can articulate a deeply engaged, poetic relationship with the land, extending beyond visual representation to encompass sensory, affective, and spiritual dimensions. The study is framed by the central research question: How can photographic practice be structured to express an immersive and embodied relationship with the environment? Situated within the broader discourse of practice-led research, this investigation engages with artistic, phenomenological, and Indigenous perspectives that challenge conventional representations of landscape. It draws on philosophical frameworks, including Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenology of perception and Bergson’s concept of duration, as well as Indigenous epistemologies that regard land as an active, living entity. Methodologically, the research employs a heuristic inquiry approach, integrating photographic fieldwork, reflective journaling, and poetic writing. Through an iterative process of making, reflecting, and theorising, the study develops a methodology that foregrounds immersion as a means of attunement to place. The inclusion of poetic inquiry serves to articulate the intangible and affective qualities of these encounters, allowing for an expanded understanding of embodied knowledge within photographic practice. This study contributes to discussions on practice-led methodologies, expanding notions of photography as a relational and experiential act. By positioning photography as a process of deep engagement, the study offers insights into how creative practice can function as a mode of inquiry, generating knowledge that is embedded in lived experience.Item Wanderer: An Aisthetic Inquiry Into the Experience of Exile(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-25) Shan, Summer; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents Wanderer: An Aisthetic Inquiry into the Experience of Exile, a practice-led research project completed at the master’s level in New Zealand. The study explores how a sensory designer might draw on the historical literary convention of 羁旅 (exile) to create a fictional 旅行皮箱 (portmanteau) that expresses the experience of loss and disorientation encountered by Chinese international students studying abroad. The research examines how poetic inquiry and sensory design function within practice-led research to articulate themes of displacement, nostalgia, and cultural estrangement. The study is structured around the iterative development of artefacts, employing creative writing, close reading, prototyping, and material experimentation to construct a fictional world. The portmanteau serves as both a conceptual and material repository, housing print media, personal correspondence, and ephemera that collectively form a sensory and narrative representation of exile. These artefacts are designed to evoke tactile, visual, and olfactory engagement, positioning sensory experience as a critical mode of communication within the research. Beyond documenting the project, the article critically reflects on its methodological approach, considering how the integration of poetic inquiry and material storytelling expands the scope of practice-led design research. The study contributes to discussions on exile as a cultural phenomenon and highlights the potential of creative practice as a means of articulating affective and embodied knowledge. Through its synthesis of narrative, sensory design, and artistic research, the project demonstrates how practice-led methodologies can engage with complex emotional and cultural conditions, offering new perspectives on identity, belonging, and displacement.Item Interstitial Explorations into the Cantonese Essence Through the Design of Documentary Travelogues(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-25) Cheung, Cherise; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents a practice-led research that explores the potential of contemporary, poetic travelogues to express and preserve cultural identity. The project addresses the question: How can a travelogue that combines poetic writing, mixed media imagery, and structured document design convey an evolving sense of Cantonese identity? Drawing on Eastern and Western frameworks—specifically, theories of time, interstitial spaces, and cultural identity from Confucian, Daoist, phenomenological, and postcolonial perspectives, the study situates the travelogue as a record of journeys; and expand it to bridge ancestral heritage and modern life. Employing a reflective practice approach, the project combines photography, archival research, sketching, Chinese traditional binding, narrative interviews, poetic writing, and cyanotype illustration to document the perspectives of two generations of Cantonese women. These methods contribute to multi-layered narratives that blend historical and contemporary elements. The study is significant for its contributions to cross-cultural reflections. Through poetic storytelling, this research reinterprets cultural lifestyles and traditions from everyday life in the past, providing a medium to explore Cantonese heritage. It contributes to studies on generational narratives by examining how the same physical spaces are perceived and understood across different time periods.Item Tangohia Mai Te Taura: Reclaiming Identity, Justice, and Belonging Through Māori Documentary Practice(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-03-28) Williams, Toiroa; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents the practice-led doctoral research project “Tangohia Mai Te Taura: Take This Rope,” conducted by Māori scholar Toiroa Williams. The research examines historical injustice, identity, belonging, and connections to whenua (land) through Māori documentary practices, centring specifically on the unjust execution of Chief Mokomoko in 1866 and its enduring impact on Te Whakatōhea iwi. The central research question explores how Māori documentary methods can authentically represent and elevate whānau narratives while addressing sensitive historical and cultural issues. Contextually, the study engages with historical narratives surrounding Chief Mokomoko and Reverend Carl Sylvius Völkner, examining their broader implications for iwi identity, historical memory, and ongoing struggles for restitution. It situates itself within established Māori documentary traditions, referencing influential filmmakers such as Barry Barclay and Merata Mita, and contemporary practitioners who employ multimodal storytelling approaches. Methodologically, the research is grounded in a kaupapa Māori framework, integrating pūrākau (traditional storytelling) and heuristic inquiry. Multimodal narrative methods including photography, poetry, waiata (songs), whakatauākī (proverbs), and mōteatea (laments) were employed within the installation documentary Tangata~Whenua. The study contributes to indigenous documentary practices by demonstrating effective methodologies for culturally grounded narrative representation. It offers reflections on methodological complexities, ethical considerations, and community engagement, providing recommendations for future indigenous practice-led research.Item The Dying Lake: Waikare and the Embodied Artist(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-06-17) Van-Vliet, David; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis article presents insights into the development of a practice-led PhD that has been progressing for 24 months. The PhD study is concerned with how lens-based recording might communicate an embodied connection to land. Situated at the heavily degraded Lake Waikare in the Waikato region of New Zealand, the study aims to contribute to considerations of land in the global context of the Anthropocene, suggesting that value might emerge from an intimate connection to a familiar location. This article reviews the approach to the research design and literature review used in the study so far. Employing a practice-led methodology, the research is directed toward discovery through artistic practice and reflection on this practice. Within such a study, the practice is the site of the research. The article presents a current literature review and methodological approach employed so far in the research and offers a reflection of what such a practice-led study might require from an embodied photographer as both a practitioner and researcher, offering thoughts on how these have contributed to a relationship to land so far.Item Recollection: A Curation of Memories(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-06-20) Rico, Johanna; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThe story of a homesick immigrant is an important one, relating to their nostalgia and longing to return to what was, this project expresses these complex emotions, offering a narrative that resonates with those experiencing similar cultural transitions. Created is an auto-ethnographic book combining poetic language with visual storytelling, conveyed through journalistic-style illustration and writing. The design choices, such as experimental typography, recreated memorabilia and hand-drawn imagery, invite readers to connect with the narrative on a personal level. The exploration of Filipino history, combined with personal reflection on experiences of displacement helped to inform the design. This book seeks to inspire readers to cherish the nostalgia tied to their cultural heritage, particularly those who have left their homelands, reminding them that while life may change, our roots and communities remain fundamental to who we are.Item The Sampled Self: Investigating the Complexities of Identity Formation Through Cultural Sampling(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-06-23) Gopal, Caleb Jerome ; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis project explores how communication design can be used as a method to illustrate the concept of personal identity formation through cultural sampling. It asks: 'How can design facilitate the exploration and representation of the "Sampled Self"—an identity shaped by globalisation and personal experiences—in the context of Postmodernity?' The artefact, CD Packaging is a visual narrative representing the diverse layers of self, while the embedded design pieces within address the sampling of ideas. The methodology involved reflective journalling, historical research and prototyping which formed the foundation for a visual narrative illustrating my own personal identity through a multi-disciplinary approach in motion, art, photography, dance and design. This project highlights how design can reflect the complexities of identity formation, illustrating the significance of cultural sampling as a method for self-discovery in the Postmodern era; furthermore highlighting the transformative potential found in the interstitial spaces between ideas.Item All Days You Own Me(Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Library, 2025-06-23) Neradt, Harriet; Mortensen Steagall, MarcosThis project explores the potential a picture book illustrating a controlling relationship with internalised misogyny has to resonate with adult women reflecting on girlhood. The designed artefact, a coptic stitched, cloth bound picture book, employs a hand-made paper dust jacket made from personal journal collections, reflecting the deconstruction of internalised gender biases. The exposed spine connects to vulnerable thematics of doubt. The methodology includes reflective notation and auto ethnographic research; conversations and reconnecting with the young self. The design process includes character illustration, storyboarding, and narrative building to personify internalised misogyny in a tangible way. This project contributes to the understanding of how storytelling can resonate with the inner child and begin to untangle the guilt experienced alongside internalised misogyny.Item The Illuminated Traveller: A Methodological Framework(AUT Graduate Research School and Auckland University of Technology Library, 2025-01-28) K.M.Shirazi, ZohrehThe Illuminated Traveller is a practice-oriented project that employs Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven visual storytelling to explore concepts of Iranian mystical wisdom. The central narrative follows Mana, a young woman seeking a sense of belonging. Throughout her journey, she encounters Farhang, a magical figure who guides her through the intricate layers of Iranian culture, provoking deep inner conflict and reflection as she negotiates her place within it. In this article, I will outline the methodological aspects that inform this work. Grounded in Suhrawardi’s Illuminationism and Sufi philosophies, the project bridges ancient cultural archetypes with contemporary technological narratives. Methodologically, the research employs self-search techniques, combining personal experience with cultural reflection, while using AI to reimagine Persian mystical traditions in the digital age. The philosophical foundation draws parallels between heuristic research and Illuminationist philosophy, synthesising intuitive knowledge with rational inquiry. The iterative development process, guided by artistic intuition, informs the creation of an authentic cultural narrative. Ultimately, this research seeks to reimagine Persian mystical traditions, resonating with contemporary audiences while maintaining cultural authenticity.