At the end of the 20th century, significant changes occurred in Lithuanian photography: a certain part of photography relinquished earlier traditions of Lithuanian photography and did not conform to the conventional criteria of artistry of photography altogether. Photographers and other artists abandoned expressive visual form and humanist content, which had dominated Lithuanian photography since 1960s, and came up with featureless photography suggesting a reflective approach towards a person and his or her environment. Such photography transcended relatively narrow boundaries of artistic photography and became a part of the Lithuanian and international contemporary art scene. At the same time the theme of personal identity gained importance in Lithuanian photography. The works of Lithuanian photographers and artists of the young generation encouraged critical look at the stereotypes of personal identity as well as the role of photography itself in the shaping of such stereotypes. Authors of contemporary photography began to treat personal identity not as a natural feature recorded in pictures, but as a problematic phenomenon. The dissertation analyses the works of Lithuanian authors, created from the second half of the 1980s to this day. The goal of the thesis is to define different creative tactics used by Lithuanian authors as well as to reveal different versions of the relationship between the image and the identity of a person in photography. This goal is achieved by... [to full text] / Baigiantis XX amžiui, Lietuvos fotografijos mene išryškėjo svarbūs pokyčiai: dalis tuomet sukurtos fotografijos netęsė ankstesnių Lietuvos fotografijos tradicijų ir apskritai neatitiko įprastų fotografijos meniškumo kriterijų. Fotografai ir kiti menininkai, atsiriboję nuo ekspresyvios vaizdinės formos ir humanistinio turinio, dominavusių lietuviškoje fotografijoje nuo XX a. septintojo dešimtmečio, ėmė kurti neišraiškingos formos, refleksyvų požiūrį į žmogų ir jo aplinką skatinančią fotografiją. Tokia fotografija, peržengus sąlyginai siauras meninės fotografijos ribas, tapo Lietuvos ir tarptautinės šiuolaikinio meno scenos dalimi. Tuo pačiu metu Lietuvos fotografijoje tapo svarbi asmens tapatybės tema. Jaunosios kartos lietuvių fotografai ir menininkai savo darbais provokavo kritišką žvilgsnį tiek į asmens identiteto stereotipus, tiek į pačios fotografijos vaidmenį jų formavime. Šiuolaikinės fotografijos kūrėjai žmogaus identitetą ėmė traktuoti ne kaip nuotraukose užfiksuotą duotybę, bet kaip problemišką reiškinį. Disertacijoje analizuojamos nuo XX a. devinto dešimtmečio antros pusės iki šių dienų sukurtos lietuvių autorių fotografijos. Vadovaujantis nauju teoriniu požiūriu, pagrįstu šiuolaikinės fotografijos sampratos ir performatyvumo teorijos sinteze, siekiama apibūdinti skirtingas lietuvių autorių kūrybinės taktikas ir tuo pačiu atskleisti skirtingus žmogaus atvaizdo ir identiteto santykio fotografijoje variantus. Disertacijoje taip pat apibrėžiama Lietuvos šiuolaikinės... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

The curiosity of the author of this work about Lithuanian poetry growing into prose was not accidental: the synthesis of various genres in contemporary literature becoming more vital, poet’s escaping into prose essays. The transformation of traditional poetic – forces to contemplate into which direction goes our poetry. So the basic goal of this work – try to reveal, to describe the direction of transformation of Lithuanian’s contemporary poetry. Lithuanian poetry today experience different influences especially: from information and technology society, from television, from mass media, from prose and essayistic creations, from another types and forms of art. Recently critics of Lithuanian literature more frequent talks about influence from prose into poetry, its transformation into prose, into writing more down on earth. For that reason the author of this work had decided to look more precise into this growing tendency. Had to admit, that this very strong reveals itself in a young poets creations of the last decade; they tray to transform the traditional poetry of poems, to escape from abstract talking and the labyrinth of mixture of senses, to contemplate today’s experiences, visualizations, things, objects, stories ect. For a long time the poetry was comprehended like the priority, more exceptional organization of article language. But when critics and literature of realism provided such definitions as “truth”, “simplicity”, exactly then them are becoming the mane... [to full text]

This thesis addresses the need for the Vancouver Art Gallery to expand to accommodate its large and ever-expanding art collection. Situated in the current debate of whether to expand on site or move to a new site altogether, this thesis proposes a contemporary addition to the existing neo-classical building which houses the current Art Gallery. To find opportunity in this historic setting, strategies involving scale and perspective, joining the old and the new, and strengthening the connection of art to the downtown core are explored. The site for this thesis is in central downtown Vancouver, BC. The new addition is located adjacent to the existing Vancouver Art Gallery on City Block 51, which is bounded by Robson, Howe, Hornby and West Georgia Streets.

Much of the academic literature and many health promotion materials related to Aboriginal peoples and food reflect and propagate a problematic view of authentic Aboriginal cultures: that they are frozen in time and are in need of protection. This prevailing view ignores the reality that all cultures, and their cuisines, evolve and adapt through creativity and resilience. Most food research focusing on Aboriginal peoples centers around narrowly defined “traditional foods,” and little attention has been paid to what they themselves consider to be “traditional foods,” or the socio-cultural significance of contemporary food patterns. Because others have often paternalistically assumed to know what is in their best interests, Aboriginal peoples’ perspectives have seldomly been heard on such matters. The purpose of this project was to hear the voices of Aboriginal peoples about the meanings and values of foods in their contemporary diets. Participants, who self-identified as being Aboriginal persons, living in or near Terrace, British Columbia, were asked to take pictures of everyday foods, which were used in open-ended, semi-structured, photo-elucidated interviews. Themes identified in preliminary analysis were further discussed in a group interview. Analysis of these interviews showed support for some key issues documented in the academic literature, such as barriers that exist in accessing and using locally gathered foods. However, particiants also contested some of the assumptions implicit in research and health promotion materials, such as the dichotomization of gathered foods as “healthy” and store-bought foods as “unhealthy.” Analysis showed that the meanings participants ascribe to food are context dependant; for example, different partcipants might consider a particular food a luxury, staple or “poor food,” depending on their backgrounds. Analysis also revealed that there are debates about what foods are considered to be “traditional.” The findings of this research urge us to reconsider some of the assumptions that inform research and health promotion activities targetting Aboriginal peoples. / Thesis (Master, Kinesiology & Health Studies) -- Queen's University, 2010-06-03 17:08:42.632

No description available.

This thesis examines the literary representations of feminist and nationalist struggles in the Middle East particularly in Lebanon and Palestine. It aims to explore the simultaneous articulation of these two pivotal concerns in contemporary Arabic literature written by Arab women, from the 1960s to the present. One of the primary goals of this thesis is to explore how contemporary feminist literature reflects the effects of national crises in the Middle East on women’s status. To this end, this thesis reads closely a number of the novels of two contemporary Arab women writers: Ghādah al‐Sammān and Sah|ar Khalīfah whose work engages in this literary interrelationship of nationalist and feminist struggles in Lebanon and Palestine, respectively. Through the close analyses of these authors’ novels, this thesis explores how, in their response to the political turmoil in the Middle East, contemporary Arab women writers render reality in creative forms: al‐Sammān cries for freedom by exploiting literary existentialism to reflect the human struggle against the backdrop of the Lebanese civil war, while Khalīfah employs critical realism in her portrayal of the human pain during the Palestinian‐Israeli conflict. This thesis argues that both writers challenge long‐established literary traditions by advancing these themes in new artistic styles: literary existentialism and realism, and, therefore, considers this a manifestation of the avant‐gardism of both writers for they move the writings of Levantine women to a higher level by adding these literary forms to the repertoire of contemporary Arab women’s literature. The contribution of this thesis lies in its investigation of the innovative literary styles of these two authors and their place in the writings of contemporary Arab women. Thus, this thesis aims to remedy the neglect of the writings of these authors by presenting close analyses of some of the works of al‐Sammān and Khalīfah with a view to understanding their use of literary existentialism and critical realism.

<p>As Catherine Clément argues in her 1979 publication "L'Opéra ou la Défaite des Femmes" most female operatic characters befall a tragic ending: death, suicide, madness, murder. Building on Clément and observations of more recent feminist scholars (Carol Gilligan, Susan McClary, Marcia Citron), and on the compositional work of Paula Kimper and others, the current project strives to problematize opera's dominant paradigm, and to use my artistic work as a composer to present a different one. With a dearth of stories that highlight the relationship between a mother and a daughter, I have sought to create an artistic work with strong female leads featuring women whose lives carry on and, even, thrive. It was a propitious opportunity to have been approached by conductor Sara Jobin and feminist theorist and author Carol Gilligan (under the auspices of A Different Voice Opera Project) to develop such an opera based upon Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter". What better way to break free from a paradigm than to do so with a popular and well-loved novel? The present artistic foray seeks thus to depart from an accepted paradigm while remaining within the bounds of something fundamentally familiar and popular. In a separately available essay "Gender and Music: A Survey of Critical Study, 1988-2012", I explored a wide survey of scholarship on gender. </p><p>The feminist reinterpretation of "The Scarlet Letter" was first developed into a play, "The Scarlet Letter", work-shopped and staged at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, MA, the Culture Project in New York City, the National Players, and the Primary Stage Theatre. It was ripe for development into a libretto for operatic presentation by a Different Voice Opera Project. As the selected composer, I began a long collaboration with Sara Jobin, Carol Gilligan, and poet Jonathan Gilligan (co-author of the libretto). Pearl, the opera, was presented in workshop versions by A Different Voice Opera Project at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA during the summers of 2012 and 2013. Subsequently, our collaborative efforts were expanded through the addition of Sandra Bernhard, a dramaturg and director for a community outreach program at the Houston Grand Opera. Through conversations with Sandra, the opera became more streamlined and I was able to give it a smoother dramatic flow. In particular, Sandra's advice informed much of the opera in terms of increasing the presence of the chorus to provide the medium through which Pearl understands her past. Musically, the chorus also becomes the third part of what I call "Dimmesdale's triangle of pressure" in which he is caught within a patriarchy and pulled by three separate forces: his love and family (Hester and Pearl), his responsibility as a minister (the townspeople represented by the Chorus), and a father figure and mentor (Reverend Wilson). The present work, extensively revised during 2013-2015, grew out of these experiences.</p><p>In Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter", Pearl is a seven-year-old girl, born from the love affair of Hester Prynne and minister, Arthur Dimmesdale. The pregnancy of Hester immediately places her upon dangerous footing with her only preservation being silence. She is required to permanently wear a scarlet A upon her chest, whereas the minister, Dimmesdale, hides his identity as the father of the child both for himself and for the protection of his lover and child, also through silence. In the times of Puritan New England during the 17th century, a crime such as adultery (a term that is never mentioned in Hawthorne's novel) would have been punishable by death. Needless to say, the ability of Pearl and others to speak the truth within this story becomes much too perilous for the characters to voice. The silence surrounding the life of this little girl is the focus behind the development of our main character for the opera: Pearl as a grown adult, thus making this opera a sequel, of sorts, to "The Scarlet Letter". As quoted in Gilligan's 2003 publication, "The Birth of Pleasure": "At turning points in psychic life and also in cultural history - and I believe we are at one now - it is possible to hear with particular clarity the tension between a first-person voice, an "I" who speaks from human emotional experience, and a voice that overrides what we know and feel and experience, that tells us what we should see and feel know." </p><p>Pearl as a grown woman, reflects back upon her life as a child where she is both the main character and the narrator of the story, often breaking the fourth wall. In this sense, this opera is reminiscent of the term "memory play"; a term coined by Tennessee about his work, "The Glass Menagerie". In the opening of his play, Tom, the main character, begins with: </p><p>The play is memory. Being a memory play, it is dimly lighted, it is sentimental, it is not realistic. In memory everything seems to happen to music. That explains the fiddle in the wings. I am the narrator of the play, and also a character in it. </p><p>With the creation of Pearl, a new character, the opera is able to integrate the relationships that do not exist within Hawthorne's novel, providing the libretto fertile material through which to explore Carol Gilligan's psychological theories . (See page vi, Note 2). We now see the story through the lens of Pearl as she remembers her childhood with highlights upon her relationships with her mother (Hester Prynne), her father (Arthur Dimmesdale), her mother's husband (Roger Chillingworth, née Roger Prynne), the townspeople, her father's mentor, Reverend Wilson, and herself as a child, allowing for the creation of duets, trios, and ensembles to highlight these relationships. The most notable of these relationships is the one between Adult Pearl and her child self, Child Pearl. In this way, and reminiscent of Williams' "memory play", Pearl's memories and current life can now be juxtaposed, together in time, memorialized through the music that binds these events and memories together.</p><p>In life we can experience our past through memory. In film we can be provided with visual flashbacks to offer a retrospective. However, it is only within music where the relationship between two eras of self can be juxtaposed. Thus, the gambit of my opera is to find musical means where the audience may now experience the character of Pearl as a child, as an adult, and as both child and adult in duet, as an echo, as a memory, a reflection. This phenomenon is most effectively evoked within opera or musical theatre. While a libretto must fundamentally be created using fewer words than say a novel or a play - it takes longer to sing a line than it would to speak it - it falls to music to express that which cannot be extrapolated through words alone. This dilemma creates a most wonderful opportunity for music to soar with tension and emotion. It is the music that can bridge together certain characters and scenes through the creation of themes that represent (in the case of this opera) truth/honesty, a patriarchy, and love, among other themes as well as the representation of particular characters. The necessity for the score to embellish the drama through music's tools: melody, harmony, motivic development and orchestration, essentially enables the audience to draw closer to the story and the characters by means that only music can provide.</p><p>In creating Pearl, it was my hope to birth the first of many such operas that shift one operatic paradigm on its head. To create an opera where the main characters are women and where they both have independent voices and thrive. As I have written elsewhere: "Some, throughout history, have argued that music has been exhausted. That everything that can be said, particularly within the Western language of tonality, has already been said. However, I must wonder, did any of the authors of such statements consider that the female voice has yet to really sing? For, we are just beginning. And I cannot wait to hear what `she' has to say."</p> / Dissertation

This thesis is an exploration of the novel Taigan no Kanojo (Woman on the Other Bank, 2004) by Japanese writer Kakuta Mitsuyo (1967- ). A biography of the author is presented first, covering Kakuta’s writing to date and the personal circumstances that have influenced her body of work. To my knowledge this is the first in-depth biography prepared, in English or Japanese, of Kakuta Mitsuyo. The next section of this thesis is a discussion of the text. Kakuta is deeply critical of the status of women in Japanese society, and uses Taigan no Kanojo as a platform to make her readers aware of her views. She probes employment conventions that limit women’s choices and the difficulties that women face when they try to combine motherhood with work outside the home. She asks her reader to reconsider what should define ‘success’ or ‘failure’ in terms of women’s lives. This section, therefore, explores these themes, and places the novel firmly within its social background. Lastly, in order to make the novel that forms the focus of this thesis accessible to a non-Japanese readership, translations of Chapters One and 15, and synopses of Chapters Two through 14 are then provided.

At the 52nd Venice Biennale in 2007, French artist, Sophie Calle presented for public consumption a starkly simple yet elegant work entitled Pas Pu Saisir La Mort. The work was not only a comprehensive investigation of the Biennale theme for that year of capturing a fleeting moment in life but was also an ethically challenging and confrontational piece. Calle chose to display a video loop from the final moments of her mother Monique Sindler's life. As the title in a childlike manner informs the viewer, the subject of the work is Calle's inability to physically comprehend this moment. She, to add in the poignantly missing referent to the English translation of the title, “couldn't capture death”. Calle prompts the audience not only to watch but to actively look for the universally ungraspable moment of Monique's passing. Pas Pu Saisir La Mort is unique piece which both characterises Calle's work while also marking a departure from her normal style of working. It raises challenging issues of the ethical responsibilities of the contemporary art Biennale and of a more moral nature for the audience by placing them in the intimate role of voyeur. At the centre of aesthetic theory and within contemporary art writing the idea of a connection to universal concepts or notions of an underlying humanity within art is referenced, debated and negated. I believe in Pas Pu Saisir La Mort Calle engages with this discussion through foregrounding the idea of the contemporary sublime and re-evaluates art's connection to modernist universals as illuminated though the recent work of Thierry De Duve in particular his concept of 'nous voici' or work with speaks to the 'we' of humanity.

My study seeks to explore the interest that Spanish women authors such as Josefina Aldecoa, Carme Riera, Nuria Amat, Esther Tusquets, Marina Mayoral, Carmen Martín Gaite, and Olga Guirao have taken in the revival of epistolary fiction in recent decades. Eighteenth- and nineteenth-century epistolary fiction in Spain was conditioned by social practices and by literary conventions that typically confined its heroines to an amorous plot and women authors to anonymity. I contend that if modern tradition of epistolary practices and other male-discriminatory practices kept women writers silenced or invisible in the Spanish literary world, contemporary women writers sketch themselves back into their texts. Fictional letters function as written self-portraits for them to reflect and tell their own stories, thereby creating a playful mirror effect between the fictional epistolographer and the historical author. By pushing the conventional boundaries of letter writing as a sentimental genre, contemporary women authors take liberty to rewrite female representation and to give the fictional protagonists a new voice and visibility. They revisit the theme of love in epistolary literature to explore refashioned—and often transgressive—discourses on gender, sexuality, and subject identity.