Museum and Heritage Studies research

View research projects by Museum and Heritage staff and students in the School of Art History, Classics, Religious Studies.

Thesis research

PhD MHST 690 - current research

• Emma Bugden
• Susette Goldsmith
• Kiri Griffin
• Simon Jean
• Susanne Rawson
• Samuele de Stefani
• Rangituatahi Te Kanawa
• Amanda Wayers

Emma Bugden

I am a curator and writer who has held various roles in public institutions, most recently as Senior Curator / Programmes Manager at Hutt City Museums (2011-2017). Prior to that I was Director of ARTSPACE Auckland and Curatorial Director of Te Tuhi Centre for the Arts. I have also served on professional organisations in the arts sector, including as a New Zealand Nominator for the Signature Art Prize 2017 at the Singapore Art Museum and a member of the Jury for the Walters Prize at Auckland Art Gallery, 2016.

In addition to my current doctoral research I am co-founder and co-editor of Small Bore Books, a specialist art and design publisher dedicated to connecting historic texts with new audiences.

My research topic focuses on artist-run spaces, that is, galleries initiated and managed by artists. Artist-run spaces are sites for creative and intellectual research, workplaces and launching pads for professional development. The role of artists in establishing exhibition spaces is both celebrated for its emancipatory possibilities and yet simultaneously highly contested. The scope of my research is interdisciplinary, extending from museum studies, art history and curatorial studies into sociology, organisational studies and cultural policy.

Susette Goldsmith

After many years working as a writer/editor specialising in interpretation for the museum and heritage sector I began studying part-time towards a Master of Arts In Museum and Heritage Studies here at Victoria University of Wellington. It has been a hugely rewarding experience. Not only have I been able to put relevant theory behind my practice and enjoyed the support and resources available to access new research and academic conversations in my field, but I've emerged with a sound qualification as well. My main academic interest is in physical heritage and my Master's, "Turning Over Old Ground: Investigating Garden Heritage in Aotearoa New Zealand", examined the contribution that gardens can make to the visitor experience at a historic place.

Operating from a private practice can be an isolating experience so being part of a busy and inspiring department and having increased opportunities to make contact with other people in related fields have been extremely satisfying - so much so that I'm now studying towards a PhD in Museum and Heritage Studies. Once again my focus is on physical heritage and my topic has grown (ahem) out of my previous study and concentrates on trees as a significant contribution to our heritage.

Kiri Griffin

Collections, it is often stated, lie at the heart of the museum. My research explores this theme by considering the relationship between collections management practice and public museum purpose. It asks what can public private partnerships teach us about collections management practices and the role of collections within the public museum.

My interest in this area developed from professional (Collection Manager - Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Documentation Archivist - Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision, Research Librarian - The New Zealand Film Archive, Conservation Technician - Alexander Turnbull Library) and post-graduate academic experiences (Master of Arts in Museum and Heritage Studies, Post-Graduate Diploma in Archives and Records Management—Victoria University of Wellington).

These experiences - coupled with a three month sabbatical to work for The Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum in Washington D.C. - taught me the value of using relationships as a lens to examine collections management practices and wider cultural heritage institution goals. One goal for example being, the ability for institutions to connect collections with members of the communities they seek to serve, in ways that are meaningful and long lasting.

This research considers these concepts with the aim of improving our understanding of resource and practice possibilities available to the public museum whilst also contributing to the ongoing discussion regarding the value of public museums to society.

Simon Jean

I am a French student who is currently undertaking a PhD in Museum and Heritage Studies specialising in Māori culture and the repatriation of human remains from France. This PhD is entitled: “New Eyes on Curios: The Acquisition and Repatriation of Toi moko from France back to New Zealand as a new postcolonial approach of museum practice.” I am carrying out this PhD under the supervision of Conal McCarthy at Victoria University of Wellington. I completed a history degree from Rouen University in 2008 and a Masters in Heritage and Museum Studies from the same University in 2010.

To conduct this research, I had the opportunity to come to New Zealand several times in the last 9 years including a 13 month internship at Te Papa during which I first collaborated with the Museum and Heritage studies programme at the University. My first internship was for a three month period in 2009, when I helped to build a better understanding of Te Papa’s repatriation programme Karanga Aotearoa by translating repatriation materials into French which provided key educational information for museums and institutions in France to better understand the programme’s aims, goals and outcomes. I was also present in Rouen during discussions about repatriating the toi moko from the Rouen Museum, leading to the first repatriation of Māori human remains from France in May 2011. I am pleased to say that I was a recipient of the France New Zealand Friendship Fund in 2012 which supports activities and initiatives to bring greater understanding between the two countries.

Through my research, I am continuing to build relationships between Te Papa and French institutions by highlighting current scientific research undertaken by the French pertaining to toi moko, as well as pursuing my PhD studies with a focus on better understanding the cultural values associated with toi moko and their contining connections with their communities of origin. I also have a passion to increase my knowledge and understanding of te reo and tikanga Māori.

Susanne Rawson

Having a lifelong passion for learning about other cultures and sharing our collective past led me to join the Museum and Heritage Studies program for doctoral research. Prior to this I enjoyed serving in many roles related to cultural heritage preservation, material culture, and archaeology including non-profit, education, and private practice environments. I received a BA from the University of West Florida in Anthropology with a focus on underwater archaeology and conservation and a Masters degree in conservation from the University College London. I have enjoyed working and teaching in a variety of locations including surveys and research projects in Alaska, Antarctica, Australia, Cyprus, Haiti, Israel, Jordan, Namibia, Peru, South Africa, and Sudan and I look forward to working with new colleagues in New Zealand.

While the majority of my work has been with tangible evidence of the past, my doctoral research interests focus on theoretical approaches to heritage including how values and decision-making affect the management of built heritage sites particularly in relation to climate change.

Samuele de Stefani

Following a BA in Economics and Management, I completed an MA in Economics and Management of Cultural Heritage at Università Cattolica of Milan, where I specialised in the policies, the administration and the promotion of cultural heritage institutions. Then, I started working as a coordinator for a non-profit organisation whose mission was to support and develop social inclusion and civic participation in the wider Milan region. Later, I moved to New Zealand where I started my doctoral research in Museum and Heritage Studies here at Victoria University of Wellington.

My research topic is focused on museum practice – specifically on the role of partnerships management and collaborative strategies – and evaluates new approaches to culture-led development, governance, marketing, exhibition design and collection management. My academic interests are related to cultural policies, to the organisational behaviour of museums, heritage institutions and non-profits, and to the dynamics behind inter-sectorial and inter-institutional forms of cooperation.

MHST 690 - Completed

• Arapata Hakiwai
• Michelle Horwood
• Elizabeth Pishief
• Philipp Schorch
• Shannon Wellington

Arapata Hakiwai

Arapata has tribal affiliations to Ngāti Kahungunu, Rongowhakaata, Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Porou. Arapata has worked with collections, exhibition development, governance, professional development and senior management in a long career as a museum professional. Arapata is the Kaihautū, at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. He was previously the Head, Mātauranga Māori at Te Papa and he has undertaken many research projects over the last 15 years. Arapata helped lead the restoration of the Te Whānau-a-Ruataupare carved meeting house ' Ruatepupuke ' in the Field Museum , Chicago, in the early 1990's and is currently the principal investigator of a research project that investigates the creation of a digital database of Māori and Moriori taonga held in overseas museums. Arapata is currently completing his PhD dissertation that investigates the relationship between Māori tribal identity and development and the role that taonga play within this.

The title of Arapata's PhD is: 'He mana taonga, he mana tangata: Māori taonga and the politics of Māori tribal identity and development'.

Michelle Horwood

Before my candidature as a PhD student I worked as a heritage consultant in the Whanganui region after more than two decades as curator at the Whanganui Regional Museum where I worked with Whanganui communities to develop innovative ways to care for, access and interpret the region’s heritage collections both within and outside museum. During this time the museum was at the forefront of developments in New Zealand museums’ practice initiating governance changes to embody biculturalism and embed the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi into its constitution. This had a flow on effect into Museum policy and procedures formulation enabling Māori communities to participate more fully in the care of and access to their taonga held in trust by the Museum. One outcome was a joint publication with iwi historian Che Wilson of a book about the Museum’s taonga Māori collection, Te Ara Tapu, Sacred Journeys.

I am therefore mindful of the issues impacting individuals and groups when accessing their cultural heritage housed within museum collections. My PhD research aimed to progress innovative ways for Māori communities to initiate and develop on-going relationships with museums that hold collections of their ancestral heritage when they are geographically remote? It also considered how acknowledging disparate cultural perspectives can improve understanding of the past and present life of the objects for the communities today.

As a case study, I worked in partnership with Ngā Paerangi iwi from the Whanganui River, a collection of their taonga tuku iho at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, England and the staff responsible for this collection.

The title of Michelle's PhD is: 'Worlds Apart - Indigenous Re-Engagement with Museum-held Heritage: A New Zealand / United Kingdom Case Study".

Michelle has been appointed to a new position in Toihoukura at the Eastern Institute of Technology. She took up this position, as the Lecturer / Programme Co-ordinator for the new Te Ara Pourewa Graduate Diploma in Heritage and Museum Studies programme, in June 2015.

Elizabeth Pishief

I am currently working for as a Heritage Consultant running my own business based in Hawkes Bay. I have a liberal understanding of historic heritage formed from a combination of twenty five years experience in all aspects of historic heritage management including Māori cultural heritage, archaeological heritage and built heritage; and ongoing academic study. I have qualifications in English literature from Victoria University of Wellington (BA); diplomas in history and museum studies, and an MA (Museum Studies), from Massey; and my PhD in Museum and Heritage Studies from Victoria University of Wellington. My heritage management interests are heritage research, heritage education— and capacity building in the sector, iwi and community liaison, and heritage management within the legislative framework of the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Heritage New Zealand Act 2014.

My PhD thesis examines a problem in heritage management—the management of archaeological sites under separate legislation from other heritage places. It explores places and compares the different meanings and practices of heritage constructed around them by archaeologists and Māori. The main finding is a refined theory that heritage is comprised of three tangible elements: person, performance and place, enlivened by the intangible ‘Connect’. The research led to the development of a trans-cultural, bi-national governance model for heritage management in Aotearoa New Zealand. This seminal study makes a significant academic contribution to critical heritage studies and the history, theory and practice of heritage management here and internationally.

Elizabeth Pishief's thesis is entitled: 'Constructing the Identities of Place: An exploration of Māori and Archaeological heritage practices in Aotearoa New Zealand'

Elizabeth is a Heritage practioner running her own consultancy in Hawkes Bay.

Philipp Schorch

I completed my PhD in 2011 with the Museum and Heritage Studies programme. The title of my thesis was:Te Papa, a forum for the world?: a narrative exploration of a global public sphere. Drawing on a long-term narrative study of global visitors to the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, the thesis humanised Te Papa as a global public sphere, or discursive space. It did so by using a critical hermeneutic analysis to facilitate an understanding of ‘cross-cultural dialogue’ and the ‘public sphere’ as interpretive actions, movements and performances made by cultural actors. By exploring individual experiences instead of totalised abstractions, this study dissected the complexity of cultural worldmaking and politics elucidating ‘interpretive contests’ and their ‘enunciation’. Due to the in-depth empirical insights and their multilayered contextualisation, the idea of the museum as a ‘forum’ could then evolve from an abstract idea into a concrete discursive world of negotiations.

After holding fellowships at Deakin University, Australia, and the Institute of Advanced Study at Georg-August-University Göttingen, Germany, I held a Marie Curie Research Fellow , European Commission, at the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology at Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich, Germany. The project ‘Assembling the Transpacific: Indigenous Curatorial Practices, Material Cultures and Source Communities’ involved a multi-sited, collaborative ethnographic investigation of contemporary Indigenous curatorial practices in three Pacific museums (Bishop Museum, Hawai’i; Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa; and Museo Rapa Nui, Easter Island).

Currently, I am Head of Research at the State Ethnographic Collections Saxony, Germany, and Honorary Fellow at the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University, Australia. My research focusses on museums, material culture/history/theory, contemporary art and (post)colonial histories, the Pacific and Europe, and collaborations with Indigenous artists/curators/scholars. I am co-editor of the volumes Transpacific Americas: Encounters and Engagements between the Americas and the South Pacific (Routledge, 2016) and Curatopia: Museums and the Future of Curatorship (Manchester University Press, 2018). The latter was developed and edited with A/Prof. Conal McCarthy, as one of several projects on which I am collaborating with the Museum and Heritage Studies programme at Victoria University of Wellington.

Apart from engaging with the joys and hardships of academic labour, I continue to travel the world. Being a passionate Futsal (indoor football) player, I leave no doubt on which side of the Tasman my sporting loyalty rests. Viva Aoteaora!

Shannon Wellington

I completed my PhD through the Museum and Heritage Studies programme in June 2013 and I highly recommend the Programme to all other post-graduates considering further study in this area. My doctoral research looked at the impact of institutional integration between New Zealand public sector galleries, libraries, archives and museums. The increasing development of buildings designed to collectively house these institutions creates both challenges and opportunities for the cultural heritage sector. Economic rationalisation, tourism ventures, community engagement and technological advancement are all documented drivers for the development of these new institutional forms. My research looked at how these integrative institutions transcended GLAM silos to build and maintain a culture of convergence.

I am currently employed as Curator of Manuscripts in the Alexander Turnbull Library (National Library of New Zealand). I am also a Teaching Associate for Museum and Heritage Studies at Victoria University of Wellington.

My primary research platform centres on examining the intersections of theory and practice between galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAMs). The Museum and Heritage Studies programme provided me with a solid foundation on which to build my interdisciplinary research interests. Two particular strengths of the Programme include the opportunity for placements within the sector to gain professional experience along with the inclusion of sector professionals as teaching associates to ensure the curriculum maintains a good theory -practice ratio.

Shannon's thesis is entititled: Building GLAMour: Converging Practice between Gallery, Library, Archive and Museum Entities in New Zealand Memory Institutions

MA MHST 591 - current research

• Miranda Williamson
• Chelsea Torrance

Miranda Williamson

Miranda Williamson is currently undertaking a Master’s by thesis in the Museum and Heritage Studies programme. Her project is called ‘Building Stories: Oral History and Built Heritage’, and explores using oral history as a methodology when researching built heritage. Her current project formed out of the experience of working for several years as an archive-based contract researcher of built heritage around New Zealand. These past projects have encompassed not just old buildings, but an array of structures from lighthouses and bridges, to sheds and wharves. She has previously studied Mandarin, History and Asian Studies at Auckland University and Peking University, and has also worked in the Events Team at Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand, on Wellington City Council’s Heritage Team, for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. She is enjoying the postgraduate experience at Victoria University of Wellington, with its supportive staff and diverse student body.

Chelsea Torrance

After a rocky first start to my career, dipping my toes in politics and the union movement, I moved from Wellington to Hamilton where I completed my BA in History and Women's and Gender Studies. My BA nurtured my interest in gender, history and social justice and looking for a way to combine the three, I returned home to Wellington to begin postgraduate studies in Museum and Heritage Studies.

In 2016, I completed my postgraduate diploma in Museum and Heritage Studies. Throughout the year I had the opportunity to work on some exciting digital cultural heritage projects. For my MHST512 placement, I worked at the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, Manatū Taonga helping to formulate a social media content plan for the research and publishing group. The Ministry later invited me back to work as a researcher, to update content on Te Ara. After finishing my Diploma, I took up the role of Web Curator of the University’s Creative Legacies Project where I helped to document and digitise stories about the University's unique cultural and creative heritage on an interactive app, STQRY.

Upon wrapping up my work on the Creative Legacies Project, I have returned back to full-time study - this time a Master of Arts. My thesis focusses on the ways masculinity and New Zealand national identity are represented in museums, using the New Zealand Rugby Museum and The Topp Twins exhibition at Te Manawa as case studies.

MA MHST 591 - completed

• Paulette Milnes
• Sophie King
• Bruce Phillips
• Anna Abernethy
• Susette Goldsmith
• Anton Berndt
• Kiri Griffin
• Lynette Townsend

Paulette Milnes

After working in the tertiary education sector for nearly two decades, including working in a university heritage collection, I decided to combine my interests in museum, medicine, and tertiary education in a thesis examining university museums. There has been a lot of debate in recent times surrounding human remains in museums. Much of this debate has been focused on the place of indigenous remains and the Body Worlds exhibitions. I am interested in how this debate has affected the holding and use of human remains in tertiary level museums which are used for research and teaching on the human body. I am also interested in the wider context of how museums are utilised as teaching resources in the modern university environment, and how ideas of the normal and the non-standard body are portrayed in medical education.

Paulette's MA in Museum and Heritage Studies is entitled: A Pound of Flesh: Human Remains, Ethics and Museums in Tertiary Education

Sophie King

In May 2017 I completed my Master’s research: Centennial Stances: Museums, Morals and the First World War.” My thesis combined museum studies and criminology, bringing together a variety of debates surrounding public perceptions of war and activism in museums.

I have also completed a PgDip in Museum and Heritage Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, during which I interned at the Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Ministry for the Environment (MfE). Both catered to my research interests, and were carried out under very friendly and helpful supervisors. The internship at MfE also led to series of very enjoyable work contracts, meaning that I was able to learn about governmental processes alongside my museum studies.

Recently, I spent four months volunteering around Europe and the U.K., which included restoration of a 13th-century mill in the South of France. I am now putting my internship experience to use as a full time Policy Analyst for the Ministry of Primary Industries, specialising in food policies.

Bruce Phillips

Bruce E. Phillips has previously been a Senior Curator at Te Tuhi. Throughout his curatorial practice, Phillips has explored how a critical awareness of performativity and contextualisation can influence the function of art institutions for the benefit of artists. He has curated over 40 projects and exhibitions featuring artists such as Tania Bruguera, Ruth Ewan, Newell Harry, Amanda Heng, Rangituhia Hollis, Tehching Hsieh, Toril Johannessen, Maddie Leach, William Pope.L, Santiago Sierra, Luke Willis Thompson, Kalisolaite ‘Uhila and The Otolith Group among many others. Selected group exhibitions include: Close Encounters (2008– 2010) at the Hyde Park Art Centre in Chicago; and What do you mean we? (2012), Between Memory and Trace (2012), and Unstuck in Time (2014) at Te Tuhi.

Bruce's MA in Museum and Heritage Studies is entitled: Towards a curatorial continuum or How to fire a gun and time-travel

Anna Abernethy

Over the last two decades Anna Abernethy held a wide variety of roles in the heritage and tourism sector. As a host at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and, most recently as Manager of the Weta Cave in Wellington, Anna gained first hand experience in the commercial development of the heritage sector.

For her MA in Museum and Heritage Studies, Anna investigated innovative and non traditional revenue generation in Wellington Museums.

Anna's thesis can be found here Innovative and nontraditional revenue generation in New Zealand museums

Susette Goldsmith

Susette has worked for the past 16 years as a writer/editor specialising in interpretation for the museum and heritage sector. Much of this work has been carried out in Taranaki where she was based during this time. As Business Development Manager at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery she was responsible for editing exhibition materials including many catalogues. As an independent writer/editor Susette researched, wrote and edited exhibition materials including catalogues for Puke Ariki's Common Ground exhibition series and an exhibition to coincide with the Rugby World Cup. Other independent work has included interpretation for the World of Wearable Arts travelling exhibition, the Island Bay Home of Compassion Visitor Centre which tells the story of Suzanne Aubert and the two regional gardens, Tupare and Hollard Gardens.

Susette completed her MA thesis in 2014 and she is currently undertaking research for her PhD.

Susette's MA thesis is entitled: Turning over old ground: investigating garden heritage in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Anton Berndt

Anton Berndt was awarded a MA in 2013 for his thesis: The State of Play: An exploration of games and their value in museum exhibitions

Kiri Griffin

I returned to the Museum and Heritage Studies Programme at Victoria University of Wellington to undertake a Master of Arts in Museum and Heritage studies in 2011. The thesis focused on the relationship between private collectors who shared their collections publicly and the publicly funded heritage sector. It consisted of audio-visual interviews with private collectors of all manner of media - art, textiles, mass-produced ceramics, natural history and geological specimens, vehicles and memorabilia. The interviews sought to better understand the collecting activities of these private collectors, their motivation to share their collections publicly and their perspective regarding publicly funded heritage institutions.

My interest in this area developed from my previous academic and professional experiences. After completing a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Media at Otago University, I worked in libraries and archives in Wellington, and undertook a Post Graduate Diploma in Archives and Records Management at Victoria University of Wellington. I was introduced to the Museum and Heritage Studies Programme, when I cross-credited papers from the programme to complete the diploma. At the conclusion of this qualification I took up the position of Research Librarian at The New Zealand Film Archive. Each of these experiences touched on the significance of private collectors to the field of cultural heritage, and encouraged me to think further about the role of the private collector. The Master of Arts in Museum and Heritage Studies provided the perfect opportunity to further interrogate this theme. Upon the completion of this qualification I have continued to work with private collectors both in my new role as Documentation Archivist at The New Zealand Film Archive and most recently in a three month sabbatical to work for The Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum in Washington D.C. An opportunity made possible because of the support from The New Zealand Film Archive and Conal McCarthy Programme Director of the Museum and Heritage Studies at Victoria University of Wellington.

Kiri's thesis is entitled: Private tastes and public desires: exploring the perspectives and practices of private collectors who share their collections publicly

Lynette Townsend

I gained my MA in 2009 for a thesis entitled: Seen but not heard? Collecting the history of New Zealand childhood. Since completion I’ve continued to work at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa as a history curator and have maintained a focus on New Zealand childhood as an area of interest and ongoing research. Alongside object centered studies and publications, I have concentrated on the curation of Te Papa’s collection of child related objects. A new project entitled Collecting Childhood began in 2012, and aims to address one of the findings of my thesis – that the contemporary voice and perspective of children is often absent from history.

Collecting Childhood is a long-term collecting project that aims to capture the everyday life, interests and perspectives of seven New Zealand children as they grow up. It is being done in conjunction with the University of Auckland’s Growing Up in New Zealand longitudinal study tracking the development of 7000 New Zealand children.

Like most history curators my work is extremely wide-ranging. I have curated exhibitions exploring New Zealand history, fashion, the Italian community in New Zealand, Aztecs, and Air New Zealand.

My focus for the future is to explore opportunities to better represent New Zealand’s increasingly diverse population, and work together with a variety of ethnic, and other communities to ensure their stories are told in the museum. One new research project established in consultation with Wellington’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex communities, focuses on a set of collaged panels from the Evergreen Coffee House – a LGBTI hangout in the mid to late 20^th century. The aim is to uncover the hidden histories and stories associated with the people and places represented in the panels. The project is already proving to be a great deal of fun, and incredibly poignant at the same time.

Visiting Scholars, alumni and students from other disciplines

Paulette Wallace (PhD Deakin University)

Manager Heritage Assets, Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga

Paulette came to Museum and Heritage studies in 2006 after completing a BA (Hons) in history from the University of Otago. Paulette had been working part-time as a visitor host, guide and volunteer at Otago Settlers Museum and the Dunedin Public Art Gallery. Work placements with Heritage New Zealand (New Zealand Historic Places Trust) national policy team; the Department of Conservation World Heritage team, and conservation architect, Chris Cochran, steered Paulette towards a focus outside the museum, and into the field of heritage management, assessments and conservation plans.

Paulette's dissertation - "A fraction too much friction: contested heritage and the Whiteley Memorial" focussed on a site of conflict due to multiple layers of heritage values. After completing her MMHS at the start of 2008, Paulette worked for a short period at Opus International Consultants as a heritage consultant, before moving to the Department of Conservation (DOC). Paulette's role at DOC allowed her to work on a wide variety of projects which involved maintaining and promoting historic heritage in and around Wellington city. It was during her time at DOC that Paulette became interested in the idea of further study. She was granted a scholarship to undertake a PhD, fulltime, at Deakin University in Melbourne in 2011. Her thesis "Approaching cultural landscapes in post-settler societies: ideas, policies,practices" examined how the concept of 'cultural landscape' was being used as a tool for heritage management in protected areas in New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the United States.

In April 2015, Paulette took up the new position as the Executive Officer for Australian Convict Sites, based at Port Arthur in Tasmania. She is working to promote the 11 Australian convict sites, which were inscribed on the World Heritage List as one serial property in 2010 - the 11 sites are located across Tasmania, New South Wales, Western Australia and Norfolk Island.

Paulette is now working at Central Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga.

Lisa Terreni (EPSY690)

Lisa Terreni’s PhD entitled: “I know what that is! It’s modern art!” Early childhood access to and use of art museums in Aotearoa New Zealand” examines the current extent of art museum visiting by the early childhood sector in New Zealand and investigates barriers to access, existing practices between art museums and early childhood centres, and the ways in which art museums and early childhood centres can effectively work together to create meaningful learning environments for young children. A mixed method approach was used for data generation that was interpreted using a Bourdieuean theoretical framework.

Lisa a Senior Lecturer in the School of Education Policy and Implementation, Faculty of Education at Victoria University of Wellington. She also works as an early childhood professional development adviser and has been involved in early childhood education for many years – as a kindergarten teacher and as a professional development adviser for the Ministry of Education. She is also an artist. Although Lisa works in the Faculty of Education she retains close links with the Museum and Heritage Studies. She is a guest lecturer in MHST511, focussing on education in the (art) museum and gallery context.

View a short video about Lisa's research

Manuel Burón

I am currently working as a doctoral research fellow at the Spanish National Research Council (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas –CSIC) in Spain. I have qualifications in Contemporary History from Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), and a Master’s degree in Latin American History and Politics from the Fundación José Ortega y Gasset (FJOG). I am part of a research project called “Museums, memory and Anthropology: America and other spaces of colonialism” funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (HAR2009-10107) and led by Dr. Jesus Bustamante. The aim of this project is to study the way that anthropological museums are responding to the stresses generated by processes such as decolonization, globalization and multiculturalism. My PhD, in particular, focuses on the different cultural politics and relationships between museums and source communities, especially in México, where the indigenous people are developing their own community museums.

After reading the interesting approach and ideas of Dr Conal McCarthy, I decided to inquire about traveling to do research with the Museums and Heritage Studies in Victoria University of Wellington. Dr McCarthy kindly invited me to do it. I enjoyed a fruitful research stay, establishing a useful comparative framework with other areas and approaches where I was more in contact. Thanks to the kindness of all the people of the Museums and Heritage Studies, I was able not only to learn about and develop a lifelong interest in New Zealand’s culture and history, and to develop a broader focus in my PhD, but also to climb to the lonely top of the Taranaki Mountain and go down to the dark Waitomo Caves.

Michele Fontana

I like to explore new directions. New directions that bring together different fields. Fields like theatre, museum, and science. At first glance, these subjects may seem quite distant. But maybe there is a way to link these subjects. For example, one can explore the role of a tour guide inside a science museum. A tour guide can be defined as a performer, as s/he performs for the visitors. And a tour guide works usually (but not always) inside a museum. If that museum is a science museum, the three different subjects (theatre, museum, and science) are now united in one single person: a performer, that works inside a museum, and that speaks about science. The outcome of the exploration of that single person’s role and actions is unknown: no one – apparently – has explored this direction of research before. So it’s like jumping into a pool in the street. Maybe you just get splashed. Maybe you find that there is a secret lake on the other side of the mirroring surface.

My PhD has a creative component (a performance), and it is split between Theatre Studies and Museum Studies. I have a mixed background: I have studied Environmental Science (laurea, UNIMIB, Italy) and Science Communication (MSc, Imperial College, U.K.), while working in theatre and visual art. I have created a travelling museum for my performance.

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Completed MMHS dissertations (MHST 593)

• Nicola Caldwell, Art for Audience's Sake: How can an audience-centric art interpretation enhance meaning, diversity and accessibility?
• Alex Gordon, Another elderly lady to be knocked down: Heritage discourse and protest to save the Missions to Seamen building, 1986
• Melissa Wells, The Art of Chronic Pain: Creating an Exhibition Proposal on Chronic Pain for a New Zealand Gallery
• Cindy Jemmett, Making Meanings Together: Heritage site management and new approaches to meaning-making
• Amy Hackett, Trash or Treasure? Te Papa and the collecting on everyday material culture
• Jessica Aitken, Seeing Things Differently: The use of mobile app interpretation and its effect on visitor experience at two heritage sites in Aotearoa New Zealand
• Lillian Bayly-McCredie, Museum Diplomacy: Developing cultural partnerships between New Zealand and China
• Natalie Liverant, Tweet Carefully, Museums: A Case Study of the #decolonizeourmuseums Protest
• Claire Baker, Good intentions: A case study of social inclusion and its evaluation in local public art galleries
• Rebecca Loud, Never let me go?: A case study of deaccessioning and disposal undertaken at Museum of Wellington City and Sea
• Elise Caddigan, Seeing Eye to Eye? The presentation and understanding of interpretation at a New Zealand heritage site
• Ryan Brown-Haysom, The mummy's complaint: an object biography of the Egyptian mummies in New Zealand museums, 1885
• Kayla Wilson, The Art of the Achievable: An Examination of Heritage Assessment Practice at the Department of Conservation
• Georgina Fell , Going Social: A case study of the use of social media technologies by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
• Nina Finigan , Environmental sustainability in New Zealand Museums: A Case Study of Te Manawa Museum, Gallery and Science Centre
• Coralie O'Hara, Repatriation in practice: A critical analysis of the repatriation of human remains in New Zealand museums
• Elspeth Hocking, We Never Knew: The differences between museum history and academic history explored through an exhibition on the New Zealand wars
• David Luoni, Museum leadership in practice: a New Zealand case study
• Naiomi Murgatroyd , Moving museums: incorporating contemporary dance in New Zealand museums
• Casimar Larkin, The participation of small museums in visitor research
• Ana Sciascia, Iwi exhibitions at Te Papa: a Ngā Tahu perspective
• Emily Murray , Protecting Your assets: an evaluation of museum emergency planning practices in New Zealand museums
• Reuben Schrader, The Future is curatorial! reconceptualising curation through material culture
• Gareth Phipps, Bringing our boy home: the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, its visitors, and contemporary war remembrance in New Zealand
• Lorie Mastemaker , Memory, performance, identity: making personal history, making meaning: a critical analysis of an independent heritage initiative at Duart house, Havelock North
• Chloe Searle, Collecting for New Zealand: examining what the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa should collect
• Vera Mey, Commonplace: Towards a post-ethnic understanding of identity and representation of Asian New Zealanders for museum practice
• Pamela Sibley, The individual visitor's experience of museums: a study of six individual visits to the Museum of Wellington City and Sea
• Lynne Allan, Giving and receiving: a case study of the Stowaways exhibit in Blood, Earth Fire - Whāngai, Whenua Ahi Kā at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
• Karen Astwood, Reframing colonial collecting: a case study of late-nineteenth century collectors and collecting at the Hawke's Bay Philosophical Institute
• Paulette Wallace, A fraction too much friction: contested heritage and the Whiteley Memorial
• Blyss Wagstaff , Jewellery as art and / or craft: an investigation of contemporary jewellery collections and collecting in New Zealand museums
• Jamie Bell, Who do you think you are?: constructing and representing Central Otago identity
• Helen Hawkins, Playing rugby: the emergence of talent during the primary and secondary school years
• Frances Speer, Good use: a study of collection utilisation at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery
• Tamarisk Sutherland, More than a one night stand: evolving partnerships between public museums and corporate
• Katie Duke, Making art public: towards a new model for public art in Wellington
• Anne Harlow, Art craft and hip hop: a history of the Dowse, 1971-2006
• Imelda Bargas, God defend New Zealand or Save the kings and queens?: an examination of the status of New Zealand history at Year 13
• Sarah Snelling, Museum websites: creating greater access to the New Zealand art collection?
• Christy Ballard, The negotiation of narratives: a case-study of the Indian community exhibition 'Aainaa: reflections through Indian weddings' (September 2002-September 2004) at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
• Marguerite Hill , Madness in early twentieth-century New Zealand: the patient case records of Porirua Hospital, 1909-1915
• Odette Tupouohomohema, The 'Pasifikisation'of museum practices: a case study of the Tonga museum: past, present and future