Arts Scholars

Koi te hinengaro, koi te arero, koi te mahi!
Sharp of mind, tongue, and work!

Keep up with the latest discussions and thoughts from our Arts Scholars whānau

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The Universal Stevie Nicks Experience

Nostalgia farming, in my understanding, is the act of seeking stimulus that connects oneself to memories and feelings in the past. Nostalgia farming has become increasingly more a part of peoples day-to-day lives recently, partly due to living through a pandemic and...

Finding Middle Ground

Reading the article on the Smithsonian’s Enola Gay exhibition and visiting the Auckland War Memorial Museum, there was a clear theme. Both acknowledged the tension between commemoration and scholarship in relation to conflict. This got me thinking about how we often...

How Victors Shape History – Napoleon’s Rise and Fall

A sweeping golden cloak, pristine military attire and commanding a white stallion while staring directly into the viewers eyes as he points his army towards victory. That is how Napoleon Bonaparte is portrayed in the famous, Napoleon Crossing the Alps painting. The...

Removing My Blinders

Patrick Thomsen’s story, and ultimately his research, was personal to him. His exposure to multiple cultural perceptions as a gay man led to his investigation of a Korean gay man’s navigation of race, culture, religion, and sexual invisibility. Although not Korean...

The Value of Research

Dr Thomsen’s seminar showed me that research, regardless of its specificity, does not exist in a vacuum. Initially, his research on the sexual identity of Korean men living in Seattle seemed abstract to me, in grounding his study in his lived experiences and those of...

Reparations for Slavery to End Systemic Racism is a Terrible Idea

There have been many proposed solutions to end systemic racism, reparations for slavery being one. Reparations are a terrible idea. Systemic racism is a problem that’s deeply embedded in the system, something that doesn’t go away with a check. Systemic racism is like...

So You Wanna Be a Global Citizen?

It’s not so hard- and you can do it from your couch!

Tell a story for fun

Patrick Thomsen’s seminar on genealogies of knowledge and the construction of research questions made me reflect on why I even want to do research. He described the complexities of the social world, such as how the several intersecting aspects of his ex-partner’s...

Sex through the ages – considering orientation and Orientalism

Dr Patrick Thomsen’s examination of sexual identity in the context of Saïd’s Orientalism led me to consider how while the East-West dynamic certainly penetrates sexual discourse*, we should also consider how perceptions of sexuality change over time. The covert...

This article seemed to touch on some things from our Monday Session!

“Working Together Is What Humans Are Built to Do”: Social Trust Is Key to Stemming the Coronavirus Crisis Bill McKibben, The New Yorker, 2 April 2020.

Auckland Domain

I am interested in the Auckland Domain for several reasons. Personally, it is a place which holds many dear memories for me: Befriending the swans at the pond, visiting the memorial, the museum, Wintergarden, or just going out for drinks at Wintergarden’s Café. Before...

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The Wicked Witch of the West

The Wicked Witch of the West

After Jeremy Armstrong’s lecture, something that stuck with me was his initial description of Eastern vs. Western war during his recorded lecture. From what I understand, this initial 10 minutes of his talk was a presentation of the ‘stereotypes’ that these terms...

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Art’s Appeal to Humanity

Humans, as a species, are a peculiar one at that. A species overly aware of their own mortality and place in the universe, consequently bent upon obsessive overthinking, and because of this we’ve found ways to fabricate our own reality in a harsh world. We’re...

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When does the war actually end?

When does the war actually end?

  It is easy to think of war as a past tense. While we aren’t exposed first hand to current situations like war in Afghanistan, we can recognize this horror across media and news updates. Then we can turn the tv off and look away. We don’t need to look any...

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The Call for Duty!

When looking at the various depictions of war that we’ve seen thus far – in art, literature, music and even sand -, there is a notable exception: the humble videogame. Ever since rising to prominence in the 1980s, videogames have been seen entertaining millions, but...

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