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Item Solarise : solar branding through the culture lens of Tri Hita Karana : an exegesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Design at Massey University, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024) Jessica, VictoriaThe project is an enquiry into a cultural approach to branding. It utilises a holistic process inspired by a Balinese moral compass, the Tri Hita Karana, which is a balance between humans, nature, and spiritual aspects. The project explores through branding a solar organisation that seeks to promote sustainability and the benefits of solar energy through a visual communication design system. Bali, an island in Indonesia, is currently experiencing a power shortage due to its high electricity demand and being the last in the transmission line from Java island. Solar power is a viable substitute for fossil fuels to address the issue, as Bali receives plenty of sunlight. However, the need for more public awareness about solar energy and sustainability hinders the solar movement. This research aims to communicate its purpose and meaning e ectively by adopting a cultural branding approach emphasising the rich cultural aspects of Bali through visual language and graphic elements. The goal is to encourage a shift in behaviour and attitude towards clean energy technologies as part of the energy transition movement. The project uses cultural brand theories and energy transition frameworks to approach Balinese culture empathetically. The objective of this master's project is to explore the narratives of Balinese culture and find ways to create a brand identity system that synergises with these elements. A website, out-of-home QR codes, and social media are part of the visual communication design research outcomes. The narrative of the outcomes intends to increase awareness and support positive initiatives for rebuilding sustainability in Bali. It emphasises the connection between humans, nature, and spirituality while highlighting solar panels' benefits and their connection to the brand.Item British humanitarians and the founding of New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand. EMBARGOED to 14 November 2026.(Massey University, 2024) Wyatt, PhilippaThis thesis reconsiders the intentions of the British humanitarians who sought to implement a ‘new system’ of ‘humane colonisation’ inaugurated by the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. It addresses two principal questions. First, it attempts to understand how scholarly interpretations regarding humanitarians have changed over time and come increasingly to deny any protective intentions. It begins with Keith Sinclair who, although initially critical of humanitarians, came to greatly appreciate the importance and influence of humanitarian thinking and its Christian basis. It then follows the historiographical marginalization of humanitarianism during a period of intense historical revision in the 1970s and 1980s when humanitarianism was dismissed along with long–held ‘myths’ of racial harmony. ‘New Imperial History’, while reintegrating New Zealand with the empire, has likewise continued to present all humanitarians, particularly missionaries, as little more than active agents of imperialism. Secondly, this thesis seeks to provide a revision of that existing interpretation through a re–examination of the intentions of leading humanitarians in 1840. What that assessment reveals is that their goal was to create a more just and equal society, both at home and within the empire. This was understood to be necessary given the ‘crisis of civilization’ these men were then facing as evident in the growing poverty of the working poor within Britain and the increasing mistreatment and exploitation of indigenous peoples in the empire. It was the urgency created by that crisis that not only fueled a revival of faith but united these men as Christians, and led them to then seek to change their society and the empire as a whole through what was to be a radical programme of social and political reform based on ‘moral politics’. What they sought was to empower the poor and marginalized to better help themselves by assisting with their development to a position of ‘social equality’ and independence through educational and social reforms. With regard to Māori, what that meant was implementing a programme of targeted assimilation that could equip them with the education and skills they needed to compete more equally with Pākehā, while maintaining that which was important to their culture and identity, particularly their language. Securing the independence and greater protection of the vulnerable both at home and abroad was also understood to be dependent on securing their greater legal equality and civil rights, and what was a movement inspired by Christian faith and ‘love’ in turn became a civil rights movement that eventually sought to achieve in New Zealand what these men called ‘amalgamation’: the peaceful union of the two races on the basis of a shared faith and equal rights and laws. This was the great hope of the ‘new system’ of ‘humane colonization’ that came to be first attempted in New Zealand. It was also the hope of many Māori leaders, who likewise understood the Treaty to have created a union based on ‘one faith, one love, one law’.Item Movements from Pearl Rivers : Connections flowing between Southern China and Aotearoa : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Creative Arts at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University) Ma'auga, TessaAccording to ancient worldviews indigenous to China, the universe and humanity evolved and diversified from one single origin, inheriting a divinely spiritual, as well as physical reality. The familial ties binding all life within the universe operate according to principles of reciprocity, harmony in diversity, and balance. These indivisible relationships continue across realms between deceased ancestors and living descendants. The role of humanity to cultivate the divine attributes reflected in the universe is aided by the advancement of arts and crafts. Such perspectives have informed this creative research, which unravels genealogical, philosophical, cultural, and artistic connections that flow between Southern China and Aotearoa. The visual outcome of the research, Movements from Pearl Rivers exhibition, highlights principles which propelled the long historical evolution of Southern China and her descendants. The continuously unfolding narrative of Southern China from cosmological origins, through ancient Austronesian migrations, to the 19th century Southern Chinese global dispersal is conveyed through a site-specific installation which threads together fibres connecting this region such as mulberry paper, banana, bamboo, silk, and flax. Paper cutting scrolls, kinetic cascading cords, woven items, and the objects and stories contributed by eight diverse descendants of the 19th century Southern Chinese global dispersal reinforce a spirit of connection flowing between an ancestral homeland in Southern China and a present homeland in Aotearoa. This research contributes to prevalent art discourses within Oceania which are learning to embrace the increasingly complex, diverse, and cross-cultural identities and relationships of this region. The conceptual framework based on elements of a Chinese cosmological worldview is offered in communication with diverse wisdom traditions in Oceania. The framework centres artistic practice on the cultivation of beautiful attributes within both the artist and their materials, for the purpose of fostering harmonious relationships. The artworks emphasise the notion of the ever-flowing spirit, underlying and connecting all beings within the universe.Item Precarious feminine identities : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Psychology at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand(Massey University, 2021) Weatherley, Guenevere E. W.This thesis explores, from a DeleuzoGuattarian perspective, the motivations that women find for, and the actions they undertake in leaving intimate partner relationships under which they have suffered emotional and physical derogation at the hands of their abusive other. It seeks to investigate and describe their "minoritarian" actions in the context of a DeleuzoGuattarian stylistic and strategic approach towards departing intimate partner violence (IPV). In this, as well as considering particular aspects of Deleuze and Guattari's conceptual apparatus, the study pursues the differences opened up by affirmative engagement with the hopefulness of virtualities, and the "lines of flight" these offer for creative possibilities, enduring connections, and novel - if precarious - identities. The extremes to which the women in this study were pushed reveal the stresses and conflicts in the bid for autonomy and equality inherent in unhappy intimate partner relationships without the frequent rhetoric that masks the difficulties of domestic life. Compounding these women's problems is the fact that there are few obvious avenues for escape for those trapped in abusive situations, limited support for independence, or programmatic advice on the broad social mandate they must negotiate. The women's stories reveal deep fissures in the structures of conventional New Zealand families by showing that the latter cannot accommodate or validate relationships that privilege outmoded gender practices over care, commitment, and opportunity for growth. Their stories articulate social and cultural uncertainties about the unstable positions of women in unequal relationships, that privilege outmoded gender practices over care, commitment, and opportunity for growth. Their stories articulate social and cultural uncertainties about the unstable positions of women in unequal relationships, the physically and emotionally draining demands to which they are subjected, and the struggle to find acceptance in their relationships, which are too often structured not by good will, affection and effort, but by traditional roles and economic hierarchies. The narratives contribute to the conversation on persecuted women's courage and determination to endure and resist, to develop lines of flight and to expand their lives despite intolerable pressures, as well as offering a DeleuzoGuattarian conceptual pragmatic underpinning of action. It shows that assertive independent action engenders empowering becoming, and it suggests that where women initiate schizonanalytic breaks, where they embrace precarity, they can discover creative and fulfilling lives.Item Welfare and single Māori mothers in the media : symbolic power and the case of Metiria Turei : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science in Psychology at Massey University, Albany New Zealand(Massey University, 2020) Martin, AhnyaThis thesis explores the case of Metiria Turei (former Green Party co-leader) who sparked considerable media outrage when she announced publicly that as a single mother receiving welfare decades earlier, she had taken on flat mates without notifying Work and Income New Zealand. Metiria made this announcement in an attempt to highlight current problems in the welfare system and to promote the need for systemic change. The resulting media coverage offers an interesting case of how symbolic power is used within media spaces to shape constructions of issues of poverty and welfare, and the people involved. This study involved two main empirical elements. The first was a systematic analysis of 366 television, radio and online items that made up the media public controversy surrounding Metiria’s admission. The media analysis documents how a hegemonic anti-welfare perspective came to dominate corporate news media coverage, which was contested via various social media platforms. I document how the growing pressure from conservative news commentators worked to silence both Metiria Turei and her supporters who were active on social media in promoting the need for structural changes in the welfare system. In the second element, I selected 12 key items from the media coverage of the controversy and presented these to two focus groups involving eight wāhine Māori (Māori women) who had been recipients of welfare (sole purpose benefit or domestic purpose benefit). The focus group analysis reveals how these participants challenged the narrow neoliberal framing of news coverage of Metiria Turei’s admission. Participating wāhine readily identified and deconstructed the [ill]logic of the hegemonic perspective that was dominating coverage. These participants pointed to considerable problems in the welfare system that needed to be addressed, but which, despite a few notable exceptions, were not covered in any substantive way in the corporate news coverage as a whole. Overall, this thesis showcases the changing power dynamics between corporate news and social media regarding issues of welfare and morality today.Item Hijau : a mediation between conscious consumption and the contemporary media activism : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Master in Design at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand(Massey University, 2019) Shari, SyamimThe research project thus examines psychographic data to design for change to enable southeast iGen Asians become conscious consumers by using social media frameworks and techniques. iGens Asian are high consumer of fast fashion with limited knowledge of conscious consumerism. There is an identified gap in the sustainable fashion movement to address conscious consumerism. After outlining iGens’ key pain points and needs, the investigation examines the significant role of social media as a critical shaper in sharing collective knowledge, personal beliefs, desires, and hopes. It then explores how micro-narrative design can be employed to prompt a shift in attitudes towards sustainable fashion. The end goal is to elicit a long-term change starting with small habits. The methodology used in this one-year post-graduate research study encompassed naturalistic observation, in-depth semi structure interview and Instagram innovation. The design output in the form of face- filters provide an accessible platform for iGens in Malaysia to engage with conscious consumption. Furthermore, the flow of the project has been tested with three key participants. The study would be extended before the live release of the filters on Instagram.Item The Southern Cross cable : a tour : art, the internet and national identity in Aotearoa-New Zealand : an exegesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Fine Arts, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand(Massey University, 2018) Holloway-Smith, BronwynThis exegesis is the written analytical component of a studio-based Doctor of Philosophy that, as a whole, investigates the influence of international hegemony and power structures on popular notions of Aotearoa-New Zealand’s national identity. Selected histories and locations of New Zealand’s primary international internet connection, the Southern Cross Cable, have been taken and applied within a body of conceptually driven artworks that function as an effective metonymic vehicle to reveal unseen processes, conveyed over a specific infrastructural system, that are influential upon New Zealand’s national identity. The creative works in this thesis comprise the suite of artworks The Southern Cross Cable: A Tour, a multi-platform art project comprising two moving image works, a sculptural work, a published tour guide and its associated web-based work. These sit alongside, and in response to, a historic mid-twentieth century New Zealand mural: Te Ika-a-Maui [sic] by the artist E. Mervyn Taylor. Together, these works encourage public awareness of the jurisdictional limits of the internet, and illustrate ways in which an individual member of the public can respond to the supposedly ‘intangible’ internet in a physical manner. By strategically subverting popular nationalist symbolism, the works raise questions about the relevance of nationalism in an era of expanding globalisation and suggest the internet is increasingly becoming a tool of digital colonialism. By distributing this knowledge in the public sphere, this study challenges and tests the assumption—often asserted and implied by those who control this infrastructure and obscure it from public awareness—that public knowledge is a threat to the cable. Instead, viewers are encouraged to explore what individual agency they do, or do not, have as New Zealand citizens in shaping this dominant influence on contemporary New Zealand culture.Item Enriching spaces : a methodology for enhancing interaction between the user and their spaces in an Indian context : an exegesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Design, Massey University, College of Creative Arts, Wellington, New Zealand(Massey University, 2018) Verma, VrindaThe longing for a personal space that serves as a sanctuary correlates with the current lack of engagement between the users and their spaces in the urban living of India (IES, 2018). Currently upper-middle-class families in India engage in the philosophy of materialism with their luxurious way of living to create this sense of retreat in order to be comfortable and satisfied (Hudders & Pandelaere, 2012). Drawing on minimalist theory to appertain a heightened value, this research introduces an amalgamation of Indian luxury strongly influenced by the Mughal dynasty with usability to enhance the connectivity of the user with their spaces. This practice led research project was derived from an autoethnographic case study of my family in India. Analysing the existing spaces and objects to develop a made to order site-specific active object, utilising the precision in craft and rich materials from Indian luxury with simplicity and clarity regarding minimalism through design thinking. To actualise this, the scope of innovation on an existing object has been identified from the case study through methods of spatial and ritual analysis, i.e., how the presence of an active object enhances or restricts the interaction between the user and their spaces. Furthermore, the research findings can be offered as a service to accommodate personal needs of India’s upper-middle-class families.Item Kate Chopin as feminist : subverting the French andocentric influence : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in English at Massey University(Massey University, 1998) Le Marquand, Jane NicoleAs nineteenth century woman taking the pen, Kate Chopin ran the risk of becoming overcome by a patriarchal literary tradition, of losing herself as female writer. And doubly so, in turning to male mentor Guy de Maupassant, himself so entrenched in the androcentric dictates of this tradition, for creative inspiration. Ironically, however, it is in the very act of Maupassantian emulation that Chopin's feminist subversivesness lies. In the creation of her short stories, appropriation becomes reappropriation. Patriarchal literary traditions become tools in the very act of their own subversion, as androcentric means meet resoundingly feminist ends. And as the technical strength of Maupassantian influence grows, so too does the effectiveness of the subversive message carried therein. The Poesque form of Maupassant, his unobtrusive, amoral style, his despondent, pessimistic philosophy, all come together in the work of Chopin, but her result epitomises the victory of feminist subversive survival. And it is a victory not only read but also felt as Chopin's focus shifts, under the guidance of Maupassant, from lengthy expositions of the externalities of female experience to increasingly concentrated and deeply insightful psychological journeys of womanhood. Feelings and emotional responses come to take precedence over action; overt feminist treatise is replaced by the subtlely effective "voice couvert" - the hidden voice of feminism. Thus, Chopin disrupts the discourse of patriarchy from within, simultaneously subscribing to and subverting Maupassant's male-centred perspective. She swims against the currents of tradition, maintaining her individuality and identity as woman writer even as she speaks of the despair and hopelessness this condition brings. The French androcentric influence is overturned.Item Circling and shaping the maelstrom : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Creative Writing, English and Media Studies, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2015) Milliken, Anna-LynnThis thesis is comprised of two sections. The first section is a critical essay entitled Lawrencian Streams in Joyce Carol Oates’ Fiction. The second section is creative, consisting of a novella entitled Cold River. In both sections the flow of water is a metaphor for the protagonists’ psychological journey and also a structuring device. The critical essay establishes D.H. Lawrence’s general influence on Joyce Carol Oates, drawing on their various works of fiction and non-fiction to explore how and why Oates interrogates, appropriates and re-visions Lawrence. A comparative study of Oates’ Blackwater and Lawrence’s The Virgin and the Gypsy, identifies how Eros, symbolised by archetypal water imagery, functions as a force which drives the writing and shapes the form of both novellas. A water trope also features in the creative section, where intertextual allusions, a transformational theme and naturalistic imagery provide evidence that Lawrence and Oates’ texts have functioned as mimetic models.
