The human voice is significant to culture and communication and its agency differs across the heterogeneous discourses within which it is listened to and produced. This thesis assesses what the voice does in Fine Art practice where it is under-theorised but often used by artists. The research questions are: how does a voice register as a material and an object (physical material presence), rather than equating only to the subject who produces it? And how can an artist produce a direct address with their voice? The thesis examines the nature of direct vocal address in Fine Art practice with the installation Trialogue (2013) and with the discussion of case studies that privilege the voice. Trialogue uses three screens to emphasise the action of voices and vocal genres. Four single screen video works are played over three screens during which the audience hears a jazz singer, children and my voice. We are familiar with our voices presenting our selves, but in Fine Art practice the voice is reproduced, and behaves as a material and object. Artworks and theories divide around the reduction and parameters of voice as production of a human subject and as an object in the material world. Therefore the voice is described with a combination of phenomenological, psychoanalytical and cultural theories. The thesis critically examines theories of Dolar (2006), Ihde (2007), Sperber and Wilson (1995), and Bakhtin (1986) in relation to the phenomenon of the voice in Fine Art practice. The thesis describes how the genre, physical space, consequences of reproduction, and action of listening are emphasised by critical Fine Art practice. Bakhtin describes all utterance as having a genre, and phenomenological theories relate voice to perceptual hierarchy and its relationship with the visual realm. The voice is described as a partial object in psychoanalytical theory. The idea of palimpsest is used as a partial space to situate the object voice. The chapters theorise the voice in Fine Art practice as: object and reproduction; the relationship voices have with images in moving image art practice; and the voice and self.

Workshop practices and the making of sculpture: authorship and collaboration in the work of Eric Gill, 1909 to 1940. This thesis examines the making of sculpture and the identity of Eric Gill in the first half of the twentieth century. A period of complex practical and theoretical innovation in Britain, histories have tended to be simplified, focussing on the idea of direct carving as an autonomous and isolated process. Gill was a key figure in this period and his persona as an isolated craftsman and art-world exile has precluded balanced accounts of the collaborative nature of his work. The study maps the complexities of sculptural practice lying behind the ideologies of modernist production, interrogating ideas of sole authorship that have developed around the notion of direct carving. It advances understanding of Gill’s workshop practice and his collaborative work with his patrons, assistants and the art market. Extensive archival research has enabled a detailed mapping of Gill’s workshop practices and professional relationships to create a study which explores all aspects of the collaborative nature of making sculpture. The thesis covers the following research questions: how has authorship been presented in discussions about early twentieth century sculpture and has this changed since Gill’s death; in light of this how has Gill's work and workshop been presented during his lifetime and since? How did Gill position himself as an artist-craftsman within the workshop and beyond? Finally, how do these presentations relate to the realities of producing sculptures at this time (workshops, patrons, the art market) and what can a detailed study of these realities tell us about the making and presentation of the artist as author? In mapping the making of sculpture in this period the study presents a new appreciation of the complexities and collaborations that were, and are, a reality for many sculptors. The study provides an alternative perspective on the nature of authorship, creative and practical collaboration, and a new understanding of public perceptions of sculptors at the time. Finally, this thesis places the work, and workshop, of Eric Gill in the context of the critical reception he received and presents a broader appreciation of his collaborative processes.

The aim of this research is to investigate the role of display within contemporary jewellery, defining an approach that informs both jewellery practice and critical discourse. Conventional structures such as the display case, plinths, frames and mounts operate as communicative platforms from which jewellery is presented, often negating the interactive nature of an object that is designed to be touched, worn or owned. My practice takes the form both of writing and making to explore presentational methods that promote the emotive qualities presented, produced or prompted by a craft object as a means of engaging the viewer within the gallery space. One area of my investigation involves looking at strategies used by craft makers to communicate their work to a wider audience beyond the gallery space. Developments in digital media and an increasing emphasis on audience participation or collaboration offer interactive potential. These methods present an alternative form of communication compared to the conventional display case that tends to hinder such a socially-led approach to contemporary jewellery. Another significant departure from the taxonomic mode of displaying craft collections is the exploration of bodily processes. This ethos inspires a growing number of contemporary jewellers who seek actively to engage an audience with their work using various strategies. This creative drive demonstrates a move away from the presentation of the craft object as an autonomous artefact towards an approach based on social interaction. The impetus of this study arises from Nicolas Bourriaud's notions concerning relational aesthetics. Bourriaud is known for his analysis of late 20th century artists who investigate ways of engaging the individual within a community-based collective through their work. I will show how collaborative practices and the investigation of 'new formal fields' are informing the crafts today. This paper describes how relational aesthetics informs my own practice by focusing on four areas of enquiry. These consist of: an examination of the relationship between maker, viewer and the craft image; the social relevance of patina in the representation of an exhibition object by the use of macro photography; the recording and presentation of social and bodily elements that relate to the worn object; and the role of display methods as a narrative tool. These areas of investigation are developed in symbiosis with my practice, concluding in an exhibition that is rooted in the theoretical framework of relational aesthetics from which the concept of immersive aesthetics is defined.

This dissertation addresses the largely unexplained phenomenon of the multitude of representations of Christian themes and symbolism in photography. It also considers the absence of photography in the extensive debates, conducted throughout art history, concerning relationships between art and religion.

This thesis presents the development of persuasive design theory to effect behaviour change amongst patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). Drawing on research from the disciplines of design, social psychology and healthcare, this study defines ‘persuasive design’ as an area of design research which seeks to change a person’s attitude or behaviour for the benefit of their health and in concordance with their own ambitions. The research aim is to support patient engagement with long-term therapeutic exercise recommendations specifically for the hand. This is achieved by identifying ‘designable factors’ ideas, objects, and environments (virtual and real), which are specific to people with RA and can be identified, examined, understood and selectively influenced to increase the ability and willingness of users to engage with long-term therapeutic exercise recommendations. The research explores existing motivations and interests, embedded within daily life activities that can be targeted to incorporate therapeutic exercise interventions. To achieve this a qualitative research methodology was adopted, consisting of photographic ‘cultural probe’ and ‘photo elicitation’ methods, which were utilised within a focus group setting.

This practice-based study examines the meanings of the space and the place of the English beach hut from 1995 to 2010. Historians of tourism consider a beach hut as a structure of some significance; it is part of the development of the specificity of the English seaside. This thesis provides a detailed investigation of the space of the beach hut and how the construction of that space contributes to the meanings of place along the East Anglia coast.

This thesis examines the love tokens that were made by the poor from low value coins in Britain in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century. The investigation has located approximately 5000 examples of love tokens in public and private coin collections in England and Wales; the majority date from 1700-1856. One hundred and eighty eight tokens in the Acworth collection from Maidstone Museum and Art Gallery were selected for detailed analysis. A digital database was created and the features of the engraved coins’ content and form were catalogued and tagged.1 The study employs the language and imagery of popular literature in order to situate the tokens within the visual and material literacy of the poor. The research benefitted from the accessibility of digitised versions of these eighteenth century sources of illustrated ballads and broadsides.

This thesis explores the envisioning of India through two different but related exhibitionary forms: it examines the record of South Asian experiences of the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, the Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886 and the organisation of exhibitions hosted by the Indian National Congress in the subcontinent between 1901 and 1905. Through a detailed analysis of a range of related primary sources, including contemporary South Asian travel narratives, Indian National Congress proceedings, and local publications such as the Times of India and Indian Textile Journal, this thesis investigates the ways in which South Asians, specifically those who could be considered urban elites, constructed the modern Indian nation in relation to their visiting and organising of these exhibitions. Deploying the critical frameworks of the study of the history and theory of Great Exhibitions, which, in turn, are informed by postcolonial theories, the thesis reveals the ways in which South Asians disseminated the idea of modernity but also, importantly, the ways in which they negotiated, complicated and, in part, made these imperially inflected ideals their own.

This thesis utilises Ariella Azoulay’s proposition of the ‘event of photography’ as a critical research method and curatorial framework to explore the affective meanings of photographs in the context of the aftermath of the Troubles signalled by the Good Friday Agreement. It examines the implications of staging the ‘event of photography’ as a curated research process and dramaturgical methodology in order to explore the political temporality of post Agreement through a discussion of the affective meanings of the work of six photographers - John Duncan, Kai Olaf Hesse, Mary McIntyre, David Farrell, Paul Seawright and Malcolm Craig Gilbert.

The archive is widely understood to be an ordered keeper of factual truth and a solid foundation of historical accuracy. However, the inherent lacunae within the archive can render this assumed accuracy fallible. This thesis questions the potential of such gaps and absences to impact on the understanding of objects in archives. An archive is defined as any collection of material which has been withdrawn from its normal circulation and stored for potential future reference.