Poly'nAsia is a practice based research project that identifies and builds from the affinities between traditional Tongan and Indian textile techniques. It seeks to explore and synthesize the parallels between two textile traditions - tapa1of Tongatapu in Tonga and kalamkari2 of Masulipatnam and Kalahasti in Southern India.The project functions within the framework of the wider cultural and social contexts. It does not follow a strictly premeditated path or a rigid time line. An intuitive, organic approach is adopted instead, to complement cultural traditions, taking time to build understanding, trust and respect. A collection of contemporary fashion garments and textiles is produced, inspired by yet distinct from these traditional textiles. The collection is synthesized i.e., it combines elements of tapa and kalamkari to form a coherent whole. This collection has contemporary relevance, while retaining the traditional handcrafted component of tapa and kalamkari. The investigative and creative process that culminates in the Poly'nAsia collection is documented in this exegesis. The collection was presented at a fashion show on 3rd February, 2005.

In today’s society, more of the population is finding itself with multiple points of reference to what they consider as home. Anyone who finds they have more than one place that they feel tied to for one reason or another, considers the impact of these places on their identity. The scale of experience with the places where we live, visit and grow up influences the scale of impact upon our identity. Even a vacation or a visit to a certain place influences us, and thus also changes the place because we interact with it. I am showing, through sculptural and creative media, the layering effect of locational identity and the journeys we make to physically and conceptually link those identities.

Modern jewellery making techniques can be very seductive, not least the ease with which an artist can design a piece on a computer and forego the time-consuming, and often frustrating, process of manufacture. But, the question needs to be asked: is something being lost by the artist who absents themselves from that part of the process? In this essay, I argue that such artists are subjected to a truncated creative process. Their design doesn’t come up against the limits of the material, and that of their own abilities. They aren’t forced to modify or refine their design in the face of such obstacles. By contrast, the artist with a handmade approach, such as Peter Bauhuis or Karl Fritsch, continues to have input by physically participating in the manufacture of the piece. The hurdles they must overcome in realizing their idea stimulate and extend the creative process, and the result can be a superior piece. But it doesn’t always turn out that way. The nature of the process is such that the artist can hit a brick wall and have nothing to show for their efforts other than wasted time and material. But it’s worth the risk. The increasing homogenization of culture has lead to a reaction of individuality, and a return to some old ways: the artisanal approach. Adorning one’s body with jewellery is part of a person’s attempt to define and express that individuality, and nothing can express that uniqueness like a custom, one-off piece. A handmade piece. This isn’t a new idea, of course, and it finds expression in ancient aesthetics, such as the raw beauty of wabi-sabi, right up to the work of more contemporary practitioners, whose work is discussed here.

Thesis (M.S.)--Naval Postgraduate School, 2003. / Title from title screen (viewed Aug. 3, 2004). "March 2003." Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-74). Also issued in paper format.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2003. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xiii, 116 p. : ill. (some col.). Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 102-103).

For my MFA, I have decided to explore data visualization not as an automated technology but as a craft—a systematic and precise practice done entirely by hand. Though the craft-based approach is not appropriate for all types of data creation and visualization, as an investigatory tool it grants a level of access and intimacy lacking in computerized analyses. I discuss the limitations and benefits of this type of approach, as well as provide an overview of key influences and precedents. I have also included select projects developed over the course of my studies that highlight my use of data visualization for a range of subjects and intents, including reading piano sheet music more easily and investigating a photographer’s compositional process. The report concludes by projecting how this craft-based approach for data visualization may be integrated with an automated method. / text

This dissertation research presents the elemental and technological analyses of basalt adze quarries from the Samoan Island of Tutuila. Both Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) and Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) were utilized in the chemical characterization of basalt samples and artifacts. Elemental concentration data derived from both INAA and EDXRF successfully differentiated between multiple Tutuilan basalt adze quarries, and these data were utilized to determine the most efficacious elemental analysis technique for Tutuilan basalt adze provenance study. Elemental concentration data from the Lau’agae quarry were utilized with technological attribute analysis of artifacts recovered from that archaeological site to investigate the potential for economic specialization in the manufacture of basalt adzes. Analysis of both the technological attribute data and the elemental concentration data provided evidence for potential specialization at the Lau’agae quarry. When these data were compared to similar data from other Polynesian archaeological sites it further supported the potential for specialized production at Lau’agae. Ultimately, it was determined that multiple skilled producers created various types of basalt adzes at Lau’agae with the intent to export and exchange their products.

In this thesis I explore and evaluate the grounds upon which we can claim that community and activist art makes a difference in peoples’ lives. To do so, I examine an ongoing art project that seeks to transform the lives of American women with HIV/AIDS through artistic creation, the STITCHES Doll Project. To evaluate the efficacy of the Project, I position the Project in relation to the history of HIV/AIDS in America, popular and medical understandings of the illness, connections between HIV/AIDS and oppressive structures, representations of the illness, as well as Western conceptions of embodiment, illness, and identity. Against this history, I provide visual and textual analyses of several of the works produced through the STITCHES Doll Project, in combination with interviews and reports from participants themselves, to determine how these dolls affect these women’s sense of self and agency. This thesis argues that Western understandings of the meaning of HIV/AIDS, combined with its physical, emotional, social, and psychological effects, violently erodes a sense of self for those who contract the illness. Specifically, I argue that because identity in the West is predicated upon self-control, self-containment, mental control, and a repression of embodiment, illness, and death, HIV/AIDS has been experienced at both a personal and cultural level as corrosive of identity. In response to such pain, the STITCHES Doll Project provides an opportunity for HIV+ women to use a variety of strategies to re-establish their identity. Strategies such as sharing the illness or displacing it, when enacted through the Project, can successfully assist in re-affirming identity for participants. I suggest that this is where the value of the Project is best situated, and that this case study provides reason to believe in the value and power of community and activist art. Nevertheless, the Project’s success at individual, social, political, and pedagogical levels is tempered by the challenges posed by cultural codes, discourses, institutions, and practices. In light of this, my research explores how negotiation of these cultural codes, norms and practices helps to both re-build, as well as un-do, identity for participants. / Thesis (Master, Art History) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-29 14:29:09.34

This thesis statement is about the ongoing examination of the relationship between my mother and myself as viewed through works of art. I will explore the parallel actions we take in our daily lives that are obsessive and escapist in nature. My mother’s obsession is her passion for reading Romance novels, while mine is the repetition and labour-intensive quality of using domestic craft as a medium in my studio practice. For us, the escapism is two-fold: both can, and often do, serve as an escape from the struggles of daily life. At the same time, however, each medium allows time for reflection on life and the ability to process issues in a non-linear fashion. The following paper will explore the functions of the Romance Novel and domestic craft and will analyze various elements of both my art and other contemporary artists working in similar themes.

The shortage of skilled workers is one of the greatest challenges facing the construction industry. The Construction Users Roundtable (CURT) surveyed facility owners on their workforce availability in the summer of 2001 and found that 82 percent of the respondents reported experiencing work force shortages on their projects, and 78 percent indicated that the trend had worsened over the previous three years. One promising solution to relieve the shortage of skilled workers is to provide adequate and effective training. Many research efforts on construction worker training have been conducted in the past decade in order to address the need and benefits of construction craft training. However, a quantitative analysis of construction craft trainings benefits and costs from the perspective of worker, project and company has rarely been carried out. Providing quantifiable analysis regarding the benefits and costs of training can help to solve the debate existing in the industry regarding the value of craft labor training and improve the effectiveness of craft training programs. The research investigated existing major datasets relevant with construction craft training developed by previous research. Meanwhile, as part of this research, a craft director training survey was administrated to measure training benefits in productivity, turnover, absenteeism safety and rework, as well as information such as core training subjects and common barriers for training. The primary objective of the study is to qualify the outcomes and effectiveness of strategies for construction craft training. Four secondary objectives are completed to help achieve the primary goal: (I) Identify the major characteristics of construction training and major factors affecting construction training; (II) Quantitatively measure the outcomes of construction training on the individual and project/company level; (III) Develop benefit-cost ratio models based on the survey administrated by the study as well as existing industry data; and (IV) Perform a skill affinity analysis to identify real multiskilling patterns among craft workers in order to adopt multiskilling training strategies in the construction industry.