Professor Claire Robinson, Pro Vice-Chancellor, College of Creative Arts, Massey University
As we traverse through some of the most transformative moments in history, we face questions over the value of higher education in the creative arts — not just in terms of the programmes we deliver, but in terms of what we can offer to government, to industry, to our communities. The challenges we face include the need to rapidly meet new and future demands from industry, learners and the government; to adapt to ever-changing and disruptive technologies; to develop flexible, mobile and personalised programme offerings; to up-skill the capability of staff in order to maximise research and enterprise opportunities; to be increasingly networked, partnered, outward-facing, engaged, innovative and internationalised but also culturally relevant to local communities, while managing costs, capability, infrastructure and reputation in financially constrained times! The good news is that the landscape has never been brighter for those with a creative arts education. Creativity is the currency of the 21st century and those providers that creatively innovate in their business models will survive and thrive in the current turmoil impacting on higher education. At Massey College of Creative Arts we see each challenge facing the creative arts in higher education as an opportunity. This publication highlights how we have been turning challenges into opportunities.
Cover / Jessica Rolinson – Purchase, NewBee Home Hive, BDes (Hons) Industrial Design, 2014 Publisher, Art Direction, Image creation and Design / Creature Design Photography / Cover, Clare Robinson portrait, spring, mural search & recovery project, Sima Urale portrait by Louise Hatton Photography Writer / Audrey Seaman Printers / Format Print
NZ PQ
The Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space is the largest scenography event in the world, delving into a wide range of scenographic practices, from stage and sound design to urban performance and costume as performance. The New Zealand National Exhibition was co-curated by spatial designer Stuart Foster who led a team of eight design students from Massey’s College of Creative Arts. His team responded to the Quadrennial’s call to create a performative environment that explored scenography as relational and shared space. The major influence of the installation was the Māori and Pasifika marae: a space of interaction, negotiation and display. NZPQ15 operated as a performative architecture, an audio-visual media site, a stage for live performance and a dialogic space of exchange. The 13th edition, themed SharedSpace: Music, Weather, Politics 2013-2016, was held in the Czech Republic in June. This year’s event welcomed more than 60 exhibiting countries, 5000 theatre professionals and students and more than 180 000 visitors from around the world.
Heat Islands by Janine Randerson & Jason Johnston, 2015
15
The Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space
Photographer / Nikita Brown Shot on location at Earthlink Incorporated Model / Natarsha Orsman Hair and Make up / Bridget Crotty  Clothing and Set Stylist / Jennifer Whitty Â
space between
Space Between is a new green business model for fashion design that acts as a platform for social innovation and enterprise. It aims to reframe the way we consume fashion as a way of achieving and sustaining environmental and social goals. Space Between at Massey serves as a bridging mechanism for current students, graduates and interested members of the community to work collaboratively with industry leaders to provide solutions to issues such as waste, loss of traditions and craft of use.
The project challenges designers to look beyond simply selling a product and more towards the ramifications of their work in the world. With the support of the Prime Minister’s Scholarship for Asia, 12 students and staff from Space Between will travel to China in November to collaborate with academic institutions leading their country in sustainable fashion, followed by an exhibition in New Zealand to further provoke design-led fashion activism.
Conjoined shirt and pieced red leggings from the Fundamentals range of up-cycled NZ Post corporate uniforms.
international red dot award 1.
2.
2.
4.
6.
3.
7.
5.
7. 1. Brendan Knight, Bike 2. Finlay Brazier, Fly Emotive 3. Tim Arbuckle, Oppi Stack 4. Caroline Campbell, Josie and the Whale 5. Caroline Campbell, Josie and the Whale 6. Alice Moynihan, The Ride Guide 7. Barney Ward, Social Kitchen 8. Alex Hofman-Walters, Planter
8.
The success of Massey design students in international awards has placed the University in the top three rankings
Singapore-based Red Dot President Ken
for design concepts produced in the
and progressively producing cutting-edge
Asia-Pacific region.
and forward-thinking product concepts.�
In the past six years, Massey design students have won dozens of Red Dot
The School of Design beat strong competition from leading universities in Taiwan, South
awards, for designs ranging from a digitally fabricated chair to a poster
Korea and China. Globally, more than 10,000 student projects are entered in Red Dot competitions each year.
campaign about autism.
Koo describes Massey as “one of the top universities in Asia-Pacific for continuously
When Master of Design student Monique Bowers had the chance to put her understanding of technology and innovative design to work in industry, she sparked a refreshing approach to one of the country’s oldest textiles. Levana Textiles, based in Levin, was looking for ways to use different technology to engineer blended yarns and was quick to recognise Bowers’ depth of knowledge and creativity. The outcome was NuYarn, a wholly original merino and alpaca wool blend, which was immediately in high demand from international companies in the market. With such success, Levana hired Bowers to work full-time at their company. “There are probably only two jobs like mine in New Zealand, and I love it,” she says.
L EVA N A ORIGINAL NUYARN TEXTILE
Raque Kunz, BDes (Hons) Industrial Design 2012, R-Chair
Helix Symposium 25–26 November 2015
What are the distinguishing characteristics of New Zealand design? The Helix Symposium in November this year brings together design academics and practicing designers to explore the fundamental and unique characteristics of the country’s design identity across a wide range of disciplinary approaches and perspectives.
Helix is organised and hosted by DesignCo, a collaborative partnership between AUT University, Massey University, Otago Polytechnic, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise and The Designer’s Institute. DesignCo advocates for design as a fundamental component in New Zealand’s social, cultural and economic future.
Massey University CoCA, Wellington, New Zealand REGISTER ONLINE AT
helix-new-zealand.lilregie.com
triggering memory Kingsley Baird / Triggering Memory – Tomb Historial de la Grande Guerre, Péronne, France, 2013 Photo / Yazid Medmoun
Ever wonder what sparks the will or involuntary process to recall memories? Sensory experiences, places, objects, images, language, rituals, and therapy are some of the means by which memory is evoked. In September, distinguished speakers from New Zealand and the United States gathered at Massey University’s Triggering Memory Symposium to explore notions of ‘triggering’ memory. The symposium, led by Massey, Syracuse University and The Memory Waka Research Group, was accompanied by the exhibition reflex, figment, curated by Heather Galbraith. Massey University will continue the conversation around memory, remembrance and human experience in another symposium in 2017, inspired by the Great War’s influence on political, social and cultural spheres. The myriad faces of war: 1917 and its legacy, will reflect upon the significant impact of the war and resulting events of 1917, the wider role of conflict, and peace in the contemporary world. On Anzac Day 2017, Massey University, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Auckland War Memorial Museum and The University of Auckland will draw together the diverse facets of war into a shared, conceptual space of visual arts, theatre, poetry, prose and animation, along with oral presentations, panel discussions and workshops.
25.4.17 A SYMPOSIUM ON MEMORY AND WAR
Venice Biennale Secret Power / Simon Denny Marco Polo Airport Terminal as part of the New Zealand pavilion at the 56th Venice Biennale, 2015
Simon
art
of these discussions in two-years
proposal was formulated just three
Denny’s
contemporary
time?’ And as we have seen, it’s only
months after Edward Snowden became
become more urgent and pertinent.”
a household name. When the Selection Advisory
Panel
received
Denny’s
concept in 2013 for the 56th Venice Biennale, they knew the relevancy of
was
unanimously
chosen
to
represent New Zealand, at the Venice Biennale 2015.
his project on global intelligence
“Simon Denny is the most high-profile
would need to continue into 2015.
New Zealand artist in the international
At the time, the world was buzzing with
art world today. His work is rich,
talk of Snowden’s leaked information
intelligent, and challenging,” says
from the National Security Agency’s
Galbraith. His project Secret Power,
classified PowerPoint Slides.
named after investigative journalist
New Zealand commissioner for the 2015 Venice
Biennale
Heather
Galbraith
says, “It was amazingly fresh. I can
Venice Biennale 2015: Secret Power
Denny
Nicky Hager’s 1996 book, addresses the intersection of knowledge and geography in the post-Snowden world.
remember sitting around the table
New
having a conversation saying, ‘are
across
we still going to be in the throes
modern, at the edge of Venice and one
Zealand’s two
pavilion
state
is
buildings:
split one
historical, at its heart. Denny set
modified server racks and a adapted
a landmark initiative as the first
Herman Miller designed workstation,
Biennale artist to use the Marco
as used within the office of the NSA.
Polo International Airport terminal.
These
As
display cases, showing sculptural and
thousands
through
of
security
travellers
pass
for
next
their
destination, they are surrounded by replicas of the renaissance interior of the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana.
data-filled
racks
double
as
graphic elements based on the work of a former NSA designer and creative director
of
defence
intelligence
David Darchicourt and the Snowden
The rest of Denny’s pavilion resides
slide archive, suggesting links in
at the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana,
iconography and treatment.
in the heart of Venice. “Simon was interested in the site because it was so
historically
explains.
loaded,”
Within
Monumental
Rooms,
historical
maps
Denny
has
the
Galbraith library’s
surrounded and
installed
a
by
Visitors from all over the world have interacted with Denny’s complex puzzle.
paintings,
sparking
sculptural
and
installation, a proxy server room with
The
interpretations
and
reactions are enormous and diverse, ongoing
economic
socio-political
conversations
security and intelligence.
about
The pavilion had nearly 5000 people pass through during the first week alone, and is expected to welcome another 140,000 visitors from all over the world before it closes in November 2015. “The Venice Biennale is highly important to New Zealand. It’s a really big gig – one of those pinnacle achievements in an artist’s career,” says Galbraith. ”Secret Power shows what contemporary art practice in New Zealand is all about, and puts our country on the map for cultural relevance and innovation.”
Jessica Rolinson-Purchase / NewBee Home Hive Hobbyist Beehive / BDes (Hons) Industrial Design, 2014
spring a time to discover
For Phil Leyten, the thought of entering the workforce with no connections in the product design industry was scary. That fear, combined with his desire to take an industrial design project to the next stage, made him a perfect match for the pre-incubation design programme, Spring. During his undergraduate studies, Leyten devoted a great deal of time to designing a resizable BMX helmet. Rather than coming out of his last year and losing the momentum to get a job or build the right industry networks,
he pitched his idea to Spring so he could further nurture his design. Since starting the programme, he has been connected with external mentors in the industry who have offered expert advice on his design. With one particular mentor at Wishbone Design, his resizable BMX helmet concept took a new direction as he realised the flexibility and adaptability his design could have as a children’s helmet that grows with the child. His helmet design may be the best bargain yet for parents!
Spring is built for young, creative professionals, just like Leyten, who have a specialised creative discipline and want to realise the value of their intellectual property. Rather than solely focusing on teaching students how to follow a business plan, it works to establish a viable outlet for their creative passion.
great ideas a chance to be developed. It also helps creative thinkers understand that the creation is just one part of the project launching process – time needs to be dedicated to working as a business owner as well. Even if Leyten’s helmet design is not a success, he now has relevant industry mentors who are able to give him feedback and open doors in the future.
“This enables us to focus on success for all of them because that success comes in a huge variety of different forms and it takes into account the individual,” says project manager Oliver Townend. The enterprise incubator offers recent graduates the opportunity to give their
Currently in its first year, Spring has 10 students working on design projects ranging from crutches for lower-leg injuries and creative beehives for hobbyist beekeepers, to an illustrated book that helps children with asthma understand the medical devices
they need to use. These designs will not only contribute to industry – they will have a real impact on New Zealand culture. These new professionals will walk out of Spring with confidence, and a drive to keep going. In fact, this year’s Spring graduates make up two of the teams in the new Lightning Lab Manufacturing Accelerator, including Jessica Rolinson-Purchase, the creator of the hobbyist beehive pictured here. Spring is the perfect next step; it encourages graduates to take the initiative upon themselves and see where their ideas can take them, while its location in the ‘creative capital’ ensures there are great opportunities for emerging designers to connect with business and add value to the wider creative industries.
a notch above commercial music and creative media production Instead of hours spent practising recital pieces alone in a room with their instrument, new music students will work together in rehearsal studios where computer software meets the traditional instrument. The new Bachelor of Commercial Music identifies as genre agnostic. It welcomes creative and intuitive musicians who are passionate about multiple music platforms, from reggae and rock, to folk, dubstep and synth music. It is built for people who create trends, not follow them. With the move of the New Zealand School of Music programme to Victoria University of Wellington in 2015, new sounds will emerge from the music facilities on the Massey campus in Wellington, as Massey University launches this more commercially focused degree, with majors in practice, technology and industry. The degree brings together understandings of artistic, technological and commercial strategies using an immersive music-centric teaching approach. With radical shifts in the commercial music industry in which primary sources of revenue and distribution models have changed for emerging artists, today’s musicians need to be multi-discursive, media savvy impresarios who are in control of their future.
Students will be supported into practical and collaborative experiences throughout Wellington’s vibrant music culture. The three majors will work together in various papers from recording and performing, to the technology and marketing of a real-world gig. “It’s all about pushing these young professionals to reach their full potential in this competitive field,” says programme developer Warren Maxwell. In addition to housing an energetic music scene, Wellington serves as a world-leader in the creative media production and digital sector. To continue to feed this industry with capable and practically-minded graduates, Massey established a Bachelor of Creative Media Production degree in 2015. Students get hands-on experience with projects across video and television production, sound design, app and game design, animation, motion and performance capture, and VFX. When students aren’t in production studios, they can be found being mentored in the classroom by experienced practitioners who have worked for themselves or in world-renowned organisations like Weta and the BBC.
Angus Muir / Light Rails, 2014 Photo / Serena Martin
CREATIVE EVENTS LIKE LUX BRING WINTRY WELLINGTON TO LIFE, ENCOURAGING CROWDS TO EXPLORE THE CITY AND ENGAGE WITH ART, DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY IN A FUN AND EASY WAY. “WE TAKE ART OUT OF THE GALLERY AND ONTO THE STREETS AND MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYBODY,” SAYS
:
CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF WELLINGTON LUX CHRIS BENNEWITH.
The Wellington LUX environment has drawn in a broad demographic from young families to elderly couples. “The people are really what the experience is all about,” says Bennewith. “The space only comes alive when the audience is there.” During the winter months there can be a gap in social engagement around the city, which is one of the reasons why Wellington LUX transforms Wellington’s laneways and waterfront into one large bustling art gallery full of artworks made of light. The free public light festival began four years ago with just a handful of artworks. This year’s festival hosted over 36 artists from around the world and welcomed over 85,000 people to the streets to enjoy a Wellington winter in a new light. The artwork locations are carefully selected by the Wellington LUX team, supported by the Massey University and Wellington City Council partnership. “It’s a fantastic collaboration” says Bennewith “When you include all of the cultural, educational and business partners the festival works with it becomes a powerful alliance that can bring significant economic and social benefits to the Wellington region. Creative-led events that involve the whole city have a lot to offer in terms of stimulating business, creating innovative educational experiences, enhancing the culture and liveability of the city whilst also encouraging tourism.”
WELLINGTON
WARMING UP THE CREATIVE CAPITAL
Taylor Wagstaff / Balancing Act BFA (Hons) Fine Art, 2013
ART SCHO OL OF THE FUTURE Re-evaluating Art Education Around the world, anxiety among tertiary art schools is growing as the educational focus shifts towards more science based subjects. Within New Zealand, educational art institutions
Heather Galbraith. In order for the efforts put forth at the symposium to succeed, more work will need to be put towards establishing trust and acknowledging the value of art education in
are seeing a decrease in resources and a drop in enrolments as messaging from government departments pushes students to look at career fields in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics). Some believe the perceived value of an art education is weakening, yet there is still a wealth of energy and pride within the industry. In order to address these concerns and challenges, international and New Zealand-based artists, educators and stakeholders joined forces at Massey University in mid-July, to assess the health and position of tertiary art education in 21st century New Zealand.
our culture and our economy. An understanding of how art contributes to society and the significance of an art education must permeate beyond the art community. “Arts are very rarely the important media story. They are more often the funny or wacky story, and that needs to change,” Galbraith explains. “ Art needs to be seen as intrinsic to human expression, satisfaction and national prosperity in the broadest sense.’
They were speculative and provocative about what these educational institutions could become to ensure a strong future for art schools. “I think that the will for students to still come and study creative arts is incredibly strong, but the pressures to have a prescriptive vocational link to all tertiary education is also prevalent,” says the Art School of the Future Symposium architect and curator-in-chief
With more than 100 speakers and delegates from over 20 educational institutions and industry partners, the symposium advocated the value of a creative arts education and critically assessed whether they, as a sector, were preparing and contributing to the future success of art industry. The panel discussions covered everything from current critical issues in New Zealand and threats towards Māori creative practice learning, to how art schools can utilise technology both creatively and critically. They also identified the importance of building an immersive culture for art students both before and after their years of study. Although this was the first time in 25 years that art school heads and staff from all the major tertiary educational institutions gathered together, there was a clear consensus it wouldn’t be long until they met again.
1.
NATIONAL CONTEMPORARY ART AWARD For the second year in a row, a member of Massey University’s creative arts community has been the recipient of the National Contemporary Art Award. Bronwyn Holloway-Smith’s conceptual offworld colonisation project represented by a flag and a media release was the 2015 winner, from a pool of 325 entries. As part of a larger online project dealing with the concept of colonisation on Mars, PIONEER CITY FLAG was seen as both vital and compelling. Judge, Aaron Kreisle said launching the flag at the National Contemporary Art Award was “savvy and timely as NASA’s New Horizons continues to chart the far reaches of our solar system and closer to home, the national flag debate is starting to reach the pointy end of the process.” In 2014, MFA candidate Deanna Dowling won the award with her mixed media piece Tell Someone if Something Happens. Her work pushed boundaries and looked at reigniting the “Is it really art?” debate that frequently accompanies the announcement of this annual award, hosted by Waikato Museum.
anne noble Higashikawa Overseas P h o t o g r a p h e r Aw a r d
Anne Noble NO VERTICAL SONG / Dead Bee Portrait #2 / 2014
Anne Noble, Arts Laureate 2009 and one of New Zealand’s most respected photographers, has won the Overseas Photographer award in the 31st Higashikawa Awards 2015. Noble was selected out of 13 New Zealand nominees for this award, which recognises photographic achievement, by a jury of leading Japanese artists, curators, critics and writers. “I‘m proud that the quality of New Zealand photography is being so well recognised internationally,” says Noble. Her well known, vivid and compelling images explore the imagination and representation of Antarctica, and contemporary issues that range from sexuality to our relationship with the natural world. The award supports the radical transformations seen in photography over the last ten years, with many more opportunities available for photographers to work with both still and moving image and a wide array of photomedia processes to engage with the world as communicators, storytellers and artists.
Reweti Arapere, BMVA / Rangimatua The Dowse Museum, 2015 Photo / Mark Tantrum
TOIOHO KI APITI
Awakening Creativity Twenty years ago, Massey became the first – and is still the only – university to offer a degree in Māori Visual Arts. This distinguished programme is positioned within a cultural environment so that students go beyond studio art to learn te reo, tikanga Māori and the Treaty of Waitangi, alongside other Māori studies available through Te Pūtahi a Toi. The visual arts programmes have grown to include a highly respected postgraduate programme, and has shaped over 150 alumni who now work in a variety of careers and industries. In New Zealand alone, the programmes have created a movement of Māori art that has a foundation in Māori issues, concepts or visual designs. “We have graduates who have continued to make art all over New Zealand and the world,” says programme leader Rachael Rakena. “It’s something we’re really proud of.” Many now teach into the programme on the Manawatu campus, such as Reweti Arapere, or have gone on to lecture in other Māori art programmes around the country. “You would be hard pushed to find any Māori art programme that doesn’t have our alumni on staff,” Rakena says. Their alumni community also boasts individuals who were already high profile Māori artists before entering the programme, but were drawn to the master’s or doctoral studies. To commemorate this 20th anniversary year, the programme is welcoming back the renowned artists that make up their alumni family. They hope everyone will be involved in the celebration in one way or another – whether they are chosen to exhibit at Te Manawa gallery in Palmerston North or come together to exhibit their work at local galleries. The graduates will create a blanket across the city, setting up an art trail of studios to visit and public art to explore. creative.massey.ac.nz/maori
the stepping stone
Globally, design and design thinking have become powerful tools for helping to drive reform and innovation in the public sector. Design plays an important role in transforming the way governments around the world interact with citizens. It helps define problems, develop more user-centred policy and improve digital and physical services. New Zealand has been a little slow to pick up on this trend, but Massey University’s Open Lab is one New Zealand design studio which has taken bold steps to work with central
government departments to help resolve some of their greatest challenges. Open Lab is a design studio within Massey University where professional and emerging student designers work alongside clients to realise outstanding design responses. The studio is staffed by designers, recent graduates and current students, with direct access to mentoring and consulting academics from across the University. The Lab draws on
design and research expertise from areas ranging from graphic design to fashion design and everything in between. The partnership of Open Lab with government agencies, including the Ministry of Primary Industries, the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment and the Department of Internal Affairs, breaks down barriers between seasoned and experienced public servants and the energetic and candid capabilities of youth.
By sharing their design values and creative approach, Open Lab has facilitated a definite movement towards more design-led thinking in the public sector. This has inspired the Treasury and other government agencies to continue collaborating with Open Lab, and make design part of the everyday policy making process. To find out more visit openlab.ac.nz
Mural Search Bronwyn Holloway-Smith in her studio, restoring, digitising and rebuilding the rediscovered mural Te Ika-a-MÄ ui, by E. Mervyn Taylor (1961)
mural search & recovery project
E. MERVYN TAYLOR:
E. Mervyn Taylor was a celebrated New Zealand artist, primarily known for his wood engravings, sculptures, paintings and illustrations. He devoted his life to moving beyond colonial perspectives to create a distinct South Pacific way of seeing the world. Although Taylor is a name that needs little explanation in the art community, his lesser known artworks are on the verge of disappearing. After his premature death in 1964, the Massey University alumnus left behind approximately 14 large murals and building decorations scattered throughout the North Island, but their current state varies between intact, boarded over and the unknown. Even though many of Taylor’s murals were commissioned by the government late in his career, no national system is in place to protect and preserve these iconic artworks. As Massey’s College of Creative Arts commemorates its 130th year in 2016, they are dedicating work to the research and recovery of Taylor’s abandoned murals. “Taylor had a passion for New Zealand culture and dedicated years to advocating for public and state-funded support for New Zealand artists. As a Pākehā artist he was also a cultural pioneer, going to lengths to ensure that the Māori people were appropriately represented within his artworks. He worked closely with Māori communities in order to properly understand their art, culture and language, an approach that wasn’t popular in New Zealand at the time,” explains Project Director and artist Bronwyn Holloway-Smith. “His work provides us with a fresh perspective on New Zealand history that hasn’t necessarily been protected, but is essential in ensuring a more accurate understanding of what we represent as a nation.” To capture Taylor’s distinctive language of art and design, Holloway-Smith is researching, cataloguing and documenting the status of each mural and where possible, reinstating or developing protective measures for the neglected works. With little to no documentation to reference, Holloway-Smith has been digging into old archive records and speaking with people who may have seen the works in the past to determine their location and condition. The future of Taylor’s murals rests in the hands of Holloway-Smith and the local community willing to help save and look after his work. These efforts will carve a path for art heritage to be documented, protected and valued by the public at a time when national identity is of particular public interest. “As an artist myself, it breaks my heart to think that these remarkable works – many commissioned for the people of New Zealand with public money – could have simply been lost and forgotten if the College of Creative Arts hadn’t taken the initiative to step up and support this project,” Holloway-Smith says. Taylor’s work may be fortunate enough to be saved, but without a change in the protection of public art, future generations may be forever researching and recovering their country’s culture.
gallagher group From a quick glance around his office, it’s clear that Professor Tony Parker thinks a lot about orange and black and the brand expression of the Gallagher Group product systems. Brand colours, shapes and forms are evident in design models and drawings sprawled in front of his computer and the samples of electric fence farm equipment and security access control devices that fill his bookshelves. Parker has had a longstanding industrial design research relationship with the Gallagher Group, a world leading company based in Hamilton that designs, develops, manufactures and markets animal management, security access control and fuel pump systems for global distribution. As Professor of Industrial Design at Massey University’s College of Creative Arts, Parker’s symbiotic engagement with Gallagher has allowed him to maintain an embedded research practice that connects directly to industry and impacts on commercial markets. Gallagher Animal Management Systems support and help power New Zealand’s farming industry, a sector recognised globally for its expertise. Many of their research-led product innovations pave the way for New Zealand farmers to improve productivity and maintain competitiveness. “The relationship between our strong farming community, design creativity, science, technology and high value manufacturing is critical for our economic future,” Parker says. Taking a human-centred design approach ensures that products are both functional and desirable making the lives
of farmers better, improving efficiency and therefore economic returns. Working within multidisciplinary teams, design efforts focus on identifying and meeting customer needs both explicit and implicit. One of Gallagher Group’s recent successes has been the ring top post, a breakthrough design to replace the age-old pigtail fence post that many farmers found frustrating. After several years of in-depth customer research, design experimentation and engineering development, the innovative ring top post was launched as a sleek ergonomic tool favoured by many farmers today. For Parker, the rewards of working closely with a leading New Zealand manufacturer are stimulating and vital. His students benefit from his current research practice, direct access to a strong industrial partner, and potential employment opportunities. He is part of a team that is at the cutting edge of innovations that maintain competitiveness and support for the industry and customers it serves. “We develop a deep understanding of what our customers are doing and how their business needs are evolving, as well as how the wider market is responding,” Parker says. “There’s a lot of satisfaction when we get it right.”
Pasifika Artist in Residence
] Sima Urale ] The Pasifika Residency, now in its fourth year, welcomed renowned filmmaker Sima Urale in 2015. She is the recipient of many national and international awards for her music videos and films that explore social and political issues. As the residency programme continues to enhance the learning environment, Urale’s presence generated dialogue about Pasifika art and design in the region through public lectures and engagement with the entire faculty. Throughout her residency, students stopped by Urale’s studio to observe her work, ask questions or simply have a chat. Her interaction with the college both nurtured and strengthened the connections and networks between Pasifika communities and the university.