Contemporary art is seen as an effective way of communicating complicated science to a range of lay audiences, particularly in the context of medical research. This is the premise of ‘sciart’. However this rationale can limit the cultural significance of artworks by overstating their illustrative capacity, an outcome that severely reduces the creative endeavour of the artist. Based on the first-hand experience of an artist whose career has engaged with the opportunities afforded by ‘sciart’, this study seeks to address the illustration problem by exploring new methods of working across art and science that challenge representations of the inherited neuromuscular disorder myotonic dystrophy, a condition which affects one in 8000 adults in the UK. Hazel, a film made by the artist with the participation of eleven women affected by the condition, is placed at the centre of this as a case study. Pioneering work with the UK Myotonic Dystrophy Patient Registry facilitated recruitment, and it is this process that forms the unique contribution to knowledge of the research. By illuminating the multiple loss experienced by families struggling with physical and social decline, this research offers a practical and theoretical image of the capacity contemporary artists have to shape research into myotonic dystrophy. The study will argue that this capacity is more ambitious than illustration, more extensive than the communication of family insights. Thus it can embrace a much-needed form of research leadership that is built upon an artist’s scope to say powerful things by withholding information. In addition, the employment of feminist literature on ageing and appearance, and sociological research into the decline and isolation of affected families, helps define the particular form of leadership that can arise through extreme personal circumstances. As pressures on services increase, cross-sector influence becomes increasingly important and this thesis and body of practical work explores the future impact of contemporary artists taking a lead in shaping research agendas in the genetic sciences.

This thesis proposes that a conceptual structure of ‘modernity’ and ‘national identity’,interrogated through an analytical model of ‘modernism’ and ‘modernisation’ contributes substantially to decoding the institutionalisation of design as reflected in the transformation of central design organisations.

This thesis discusses how British Quaker women negotiated relinquishing their religiously prescribed Plain dress from 1860 to 1914 in the context of developments in Quaker feminine identity. This thesis approaches its subjects by examining the primary source of surviving Quaker garments in British dress collections. These items provide the basis from which research methodologies and the personal narratives of Quaker women and their case studies are developed. Surviving garments, alongside historical letters, diaries, religious texts, department store catalogues, photographs and period dress illustrations are analysed in order to understand how women Quakers practised their religion and organised their public appearance through dress during this period. The original quality of this research is the outcome of an interdisciplinary approach. No other research project in the international dress history or religious history fields has discussed and critically considered the identity of British Quaker women through an analysis of their surviving clothing between 1860 and 1914. This aspect of British social history and therefore British identity has until now remained unexplored and unacknowledged. By 1860 Quakerism had undergone extreme doctrinal upheaval, which had led to the abandonment of those rules which enforced Plainness of speech and apparel that same year. Even prior to 1860, this thesis reveals that some women were incorporating fashion into their religious Plain dress, by using fashionable silhouettes and high-quality fabrics albeit eschewing bright colours and ornamentation. After 1860 however, male and female Quakers had complete individual freedom of choice in their clothing. During this period of religious turmoil, female Victorian Quakers vocalised a range of opinions on women's emancipation, education and welfare, on their role within the religious society and their opinions concerning dress through published correspondence in Quaker journals. This thesis identifies a variety of views concerning dress between 1860 and 1914, as Quaker women negotiated their individual freedom of choice in attire in a ternary manner. Moreover, this thesis proves that this ternary interpretation was acknowledged by Quakers themselves and discussed within Quaker journals in the 1860-1914 period. Quakers of the period identified these ternary interpretations as ascetic, moderate and fashionable. This thesis proposes a new set of classifying terms, Non-Adaptive, Semi-Adaptive and Fully-Adaptive, in reflection of the extent to which Quaker women adapted their religious clothing to incorporate fashion alongside their differing interpretations of Quaker belief. Four case studies illustrate further these three adaptive interpretations, and show how individual Quaker women chose to present themselves to their religious community and wider society.

R. Buckminster Fuller's design and architectural work is frequently described as being "inspired by nature". However, to date there has been little investigation of his claim. What was Fuller's understanding of "nature" and how did it affect the conception, production and presentation of his work? This thesis attempts to characterize R. Buckminster Fuller's understanding of nature, which will be called a model of nature, and to trace its impact upon his work over the course of his career using an interdisciplinary historical approach.

The potential for art in peacebuilding has shown success but not complete acceptance in the peacebuilding field. Participatory photography’s method of photovoice has shown effective as a unique participatory action research tool able to allow users to communicate deeply on sensitive subjects with potential to influence larger social change. Participatory photography programs involving intergroup conflict or tensions presents an important relational component for practitioners and stakeholders to respond to, however the factors which lead to successful collaborative action, an ambitious outcome is not yet known. This thesis examines why some participatory photography programs involving intergroup conflict or tensions can reach collaborative social action more easily than others.  A structured focused comparison tests a theorized positive relationship between program duration and achievement of collaborative social action. The findings give moderate support to the hypothesis, as a low program duration shows a challenge to reach collaborative social action and a mid-range program duration proves able to achieve a high level of collaborative social action. On the other hand, an extreme high program duration can reach social action but it is not collaborative. Analysis considers some other factors affecting collaborative social action such as context and program design factors, which suggests the need for further testing to inform better practical designs of future participatory photography programs.

This thesis is a documentation of an empirical study in which qualitative methods were employed to investigate the current programmes offered to pre-service Creative Arts teachers at selected South African universities. The subject, Creative Arts, is one of the compulsory learning areas for grades R - 9 in all South African public schools as prescribed by the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement of 2011. In order for learners to gain maximum benefit from the subject Creative Arts, pre-service teachers should be educated to gain an understanding of the interrelatedness of the different art forms. The theoretical framework underpinning this study is Mezirow's theory of transformative learning which is based on critical reflection. Pre-service teachers should therefore be encouraged to critically reflect on the learning process, rethinking their own perspectives and constructing new knowledge in the process of discourse with others. Information on the current programmes offered at five South African universities involved in this collective case study, was extrapolated from interviews with both lecturers of Creative Arts programmes, and pre-service teachers enrolled for courses in Creative Arts. Furthermore, observations were done at various sites to obtain an in-depth perspective of how the arts are presented at these institutions. Findings revealed that most universities offer Creative Arts programmes with an arts specific approach. This corresponds with the demands of artistic disciplines, and especially performance arts, which require the development of practical skills which should be developed over an extended period. Although developing these specialized skills and knowledge in each art form is important, the discrete presentation of these arts may limit opportunities for students to experience integrated arts activities. Moreover, pre-service teachers need practice in school based settings to hone their teaching skills in delivering meaningful arts activities to learners. The recognition of common grounds between the different art disciplines makes the merging of these arts into the broad subject, Creative Arts possible. These commonalities should be further explored, especially in a South African context where African arts are inherently integrated. Benefits of co-operative curriculum planning between the departments of Basic and Higher Education in the provision of competent and skilful teachers for Creative Arts is the key to successful arts education in South African schools. / Thesis (DMus)--University of Pretoria, 2016. / Music / DMus / Unrestricted

<p>This study advances communication scholarship on fragments (McGee, 1990), while demonstrating how to create and use an innovative approach to scholarship in this field. The research goal was two-part. First, to better understand the everyday critic’s role in co-creating discourse. This master’s project prompted eight collaborators to create an artifact in response or interpretation to a focal work, the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Ethnographic and autoethnographic methods were used to observe the discourse that emerged from this prompt. Observations challenge the separation between text and context, revealing the significant impact that vernacular fragments have on the rhetorical life of a work. The second research goal was to create an arts-based approach that would be most appropriate to reach this better understanding. This work can be used as an exemplar of arts-based research approaches applied to achieve theoretical understandings in communications scholarship.</p>

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

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Background: The Public Health Agency of Canada published a strategic document recognising the elements associated with person-centred dementia care, including interactions with stakeholders and research mandates. One essential element identified was advanced therapies, containing non-pharmacological interventions, such as creative arts-based interventions. Objective: This thesis investigates the impact of creative arts-based interventions on individuals with dementia, living in residential care through a scoping review (ScR) and a mixed-methods systematic review (MMSR). Methods: The ScR surveyed the current literature base to identify which creative arts-based interventions improved the personhood, quality of life and well-being of persons with dementia (PwD); five studies were included. The MMSR explored the impact of dance interventions on the symptoms of dementia on persons with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, as dance was unrepresented in the ScR; three studies were included. Both reviews were narratively synthesized due to the heterogeneity in the results. Results: Each included study spoke of the impact the creative arts had on the PwD and which element(s) of their health improved. Results also showed that the creative arts were beneficial for the personhood of the PwD (ScR) and for decreasing symptoms while promoting the person (MMSR). Conclusion: We must continue to look past the condition and recognize that creativity, psychosocial needs, and creative arts are all interconnected in promoting the personhood of PwD. Creative arts-based interventions can be designed to promote the individual creativity of the person and showcase their intact abilities.