Queensland University of Technology Newspaper Issue No 148
Funding cuts to
‘hit the young’
Page 2
Team tracks QUT's history
Page 4
May 28-July 15, 1996
Art through the eyes of a child
Page 6
by Trina McLellan
At Brisbane’s Prince Charles Hospital, keeping track of one heart failure or transplant patient involves the generation and maintenance of at least half a dozen bulky files.
A n d — w i t h 1 2 9 t r a n s p l a n t s completed since its first in mid-1990 and another 540 sets of patient records to keep track of — no one u n d e r s t a n d s t h e c h a l l e n g e o f keeping track of that much data better than the unit’s co-ordinator, Jo Maddicks.
So, when a trio of Information Technology students from QUT said they wanted to help construct a user- friendly computer database to help ease the paperwork, Ms Maddicks was more than happy to accept.
“We already have an American system, but it is far from user-friendly and has been designed to meet the needs of the US medical system which is vastly different to the information we need to collect,” Ms Maddicks explained.
“The idea of having one specifically designed for what we wanted was too good to refuse.”
Christine Fong, Eileen Chung and David (Duc) Huu Lu — all full-time Bachelor of Information Technology students in their final year of study — offered to undertake the team project as part of their assessment this semester.
Since then the team has spent hundreds of hours on the project which has encompassed analysing the requirements of the hospital’s Heart Failure and Transplant Unit, mapping its data flows, selecting a suitable software platform, designing an easy- to-use database, liaising with the unit’s staff, trialling their system and documenting their progress.
The Deputy Head of the School of Information Systems, Bob Smyth — the students’ supervisor for their project — played an advisory role, encouraging the team and supporting it through key decisions.
He said he was pleased the students had spent a lot of time defining the very particular requirements of the transplant unit.
“They took a great deal of care to target the specific needs of the transplant unit and throughout the semester they have discussed the project with me as they have worked on various challenges,” Mr Smyth said.
“Also, they’ve put a great deal of effort into making their system user- friendly.”
Ms Chung, who comes from the town of Sibu on the Malaysian island of Sarawak, and Ms Fong, who comes from Suva in Fiji, agreed their first hurdles were to overcome a myriad of unfamiliar medical terms and the
notion that they might be working with
“life and death” information.
“Initially we were very concerned,”
Ms Chung said.
“We knew that the unit’s work was very important and we didn’t want anything to go wrong.”
Even Ms Maddicks had noticed their initial apprehension.
“Christine and Eileen were understandably anxious and they had to come to grips with lots of medical information and procedures fairly quickly,” she said.
Continued page 3
Lecturer to join PM’s task force
by Carmen Myler
Following an invitation from Prime Minister John Howard, School of Social Science lecturer Phil Crane will join the Prime Ministerial Youth Homeless Task Force.
The task force will oversee the development of the a program of youth homelessness pilots, following the its official launch at last year’s Australian Council of Social Services’ conference.
In a letter to the youth services lecturer, Mr Howard said the program would use the skills and expertise of major voluntary welfare organisations to assist young homeless people by providing early intervention, voluntary
mediation and, where practicable, reconciliation with the family.
He said the program would establish pilot projects which would work to re- engage homeless and at-risk young people in family, work, education, training and community life.
Mr Crane, the only academic on the task force of 12 people, said it was a tremendous opportunity to contribute to the development of policy and service provision for young people.
He said his invitation to join the task force had come about partly due to a draft research report which he had worked on with School of Cultural and Policy Studies senior lecturer Dr Jillian Brannock and a team from the Faculty
of Education’s Centre for Policy and Leadership Studies.
The paper had been submitted for the National Youth Affairs Research Scheme, he said.
“Undertaking this research was a key factor in the invitation,” Mr Crane said.
“The work looked into best-practice models for prevention of and early intervention into youth homelessness.
“Youth services is an area which I’ve been writing about and researching in as an academic for the past six years.
“Prior to joining QUT, I was involved in the development of services for young homeless people,”
he said.
Continued page 4 (L-R) David Lu, Bob Smyth, Eileen Chung, Jo Maddicks and Christine Fong at Prince Charles Hospital with a fraction of the paperwork which flows daily through the transplant unit
96148SR1
Students help streamline transplant patient records
Gough appointed dean of Info Tech
Professor John Gough has been appointed Dean of QUT’s Faculty of Information Technology.
Dr Gough, the acting dean for the past year, won the position following international advertisement.
His career at QUT spans 24 years. He began as senior lecturer in mathematics and headed the new Computing Science Section within that department in 1983.
In the same year, a new Computing School was established and Professor Gough alternated as its head. He became principal lecturer and head of Computing Science Section within the school in 1985, then Head of Department of Computing Science within the Faculty of Information Technology in 1987.
He was appointed Professor and Head of School of Computing Science within the Faculty of Information Technology in 1989.
Since then, he has acted as Pro- Vice-Chancellor (Research and Advancement) and, more recently, was Director of Research for the faculty.
Professor Gough is overseas at present. Profile next issue.
Professor John Gough 96148SP2
Page 2 INSIDE QUT May 28-July 15, 1996
QUT librarian honoured
Vice-Chancellor’s comment
96148SP3
From the Inside by David Hawke
Which economies will dominate in 2020?
By the year 2020, the Asia-Pacific region will include eight of the world’s 12 largest economies, according to two Queensland academics who have guest-edited an upcoming edition of the Human Resource Management Journal.
QUT’s Professor Greg Bamber and Professor Chris Leggett of Central Queensland University collaborated on the special issue —“HRM in the Asia- Pacific Region” — which is to be published soon and launched at the World Congress on Personnel Management to be held in Hong Kong from June 25 to 28.
The two professors predict eight Pacific Rim countries — Japan, China, Russia, Canada, the United States, South Korea, Indonesia and India — would join Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Italy as the leading economies within a generation or so.
Professor Bamber suggested the coming redistribution of economic wealth made it “all the more important to understand what is happening in this region”.
“Australians could learn a great deal from the management strategies used by their neighbours around the Pacific,” Professor Bamber wrote.
“The Asia-Pacific region is a substantial investor in Australia, so that an understanding of employment relations in Asia sheds light on the many Asian companies operating here.”
In their editorial, the two professors said Britain’s Labour Party had shown considerable interest in Australia, especially from 1983 to 1996, when
the Australian Labor Party (ALP) was in office at the Federal level.
“Its wage and prices ‘Accord’ with the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) was an important cornerstone of the ALP’s success,”
they wrote.
“The architects of the Accord learned, for example, from Scandinavian and Austrian innovations as well as from the earlier British experiences with the post-1974
‘Social Contract’ between the British Labour Government and Trades Union Congress (TUC).
“In contrast to the Accord, the Social Contract was short-lived and unsuccessful.”
On the other hand, they wrote, Singapore’s Central Provident Fund (CPF), “a compulsory but versatile savings scheme”, had attracted much interest in Australia, Britain and elsewhere.
“Some Conservative politicians in Britain see something like the CPF as a route to privatising more welfare provisions and making Britons more self-reliant.
“Labour politicians wanting to rebuild Britain’s social insurance are interested in funded schemes which are State-regulated, if not State-run, and which would not involve raising taxes.”
The pair suggested explanations of the industrialisation of countries varied, but most included the role of the institutions and practices of industrial relations and/or human resource management.
“That emphasis on the former has tended to give way to the latter,” they
wrote, “is evidenced in the public policies for industrialisation in some of the Asia-Pacific countries and in the restructuring of the Japanese, Australian and New Zealand economies.”
The pair classified four stages of economic development in the Asia- Pacific region.
“The developed countries there include the US, Canada, Japan, Australia and New Zealand,” they w r o t e . “ T h e A s i a n , n e w l y i n d u s t r i a l i s e d e c o n o m i e s — o r
‘Asian Tigers’ — Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan are a t o p t i e r o f p o s t - J a p a n industrialisers.
“A second generation of ‘Tigers’
includes Malaysia in the vanguard, with Thailand and the special economic zones of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) following.
“A third tier of industrialisers may include countries as diverse as other parts of the PRC, Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia, and perhaps the countries of the Indian sub- continent.
“Our proposed classification identifies various distinctive approaches to human resource and industrial relations issues which are relevant for managers to understand in Europe and North America as well as in Australia.”
Professor Bamber, who has headed the Australian Centre in Strategic Management (ACSM) at QUT since 1992, will soon move to Griffith University to become director of that university’s Graduate School of Management.
QUT masters graduate Mark Hibbert is heading for Paris in August after being invited to present a paper at prestigious international electrical engineering conference, CIGRE.
Mr Hibbert, a SEQEB planning engineer, will present his paper, Transient Recovery Voltage for Switching Equipment Located in the Feeders in Medium Voltage Distribution Networks, at a high-voltage power systems conference in August, 1996.
His paper was written in conjunction with School of Electrical and Electronic Systems Engineering lecturer David Birtwhistle as part of a Master of Electrical
Engineering course from which Mr Hibbert graduated on April 29.
Mr Hibbert said the research results had important implications for electricity authorities and industry suppliers.
“The research looked at the stresses placed on pole-mounted reclosers (PMRs) in the field,” he said.
“Through real-life tests and computer models, I discovered PMRs located 10km or more from a substation could easily withstand the stresses they’re subjected to and that our specifications in these instances could be relaxed. However, PMRs within a 5km radius can be subjected to stresses for which they are not designed.
“This means CIGRE may need to consider new standards for PMRs located in feeders.”
Mr Hibbert said he was surprised to learn he had been awarded the
“scholarship”, which will fund his travel and accommodation costs while he is in France.
“I knew David Birtwhistle had nominated me but, as the scholarship is for young engineers and I’m 37, I thought I was too old to be eligible.
“However, David reassured me that I wouldn’t be considered an ‘old’ engineer until I had 20 years’ experience!”
he said.
Engineering graduate to present in Paris
United we stand, divided we lose
effect which a large cut would have.
But they have also made a few self-serving points about their own special circumstances.
What we are seeing at the moment is a series of “yes, but”
a r g u m e n t s a s u n i v e r s i t i e s scramble to defend their own turf.
“Yes, but we’re a regional university and you can't touch us”, “Yes, but we have sandstone buildings”, “Yes, but we have research infrastructure which would go to waste if you cut our budget”.
The sector would be far better served by presenting a united f r o n t t o t h e G o v e r n m e n t , e m p h a s i s i n g t h e c o m m o n benefits universities bring to the community rather than their differences.
A united front should also include student groups — such a s t h e N U S — a s w e l l a s the academic and general staff unions.
T h e r e a r e s i g n s o f t h i s emerging through the current n e g o t i a t i o n s b e t w e e n t h e Australian Vice-Chancellors’
Committee and other interested parties for a joint statement about higher education funding.
Together we can put a far more effective case for public investment in higher education.
Professor Dennis Gibson I was at the now famous (or
infamous) meeting last week w h e n E d u c a t i o n M i n i s t e r Amanda Vanstone gave Vice- Chancellors the first indication o f t h e e x t e n t o f c u t s i n t h e C o m m o n w e a l t h h i g h e r education budget.
It seems as though higher education has not been off the front pages since.
The extent of public support for the universities in these d i f f i c u l t t i m e s h a s b e e n heartening.
Higher education is clearly high in the hierarchy of needs f o r b o t h s t u d e n t s a n d t h e i r parents and other relations.
Since the meeting with the Minister, vice-chancellors have rightly pointed to the destructive
VC – funding cuts will hit the young
QUT librarian Colleen Cleary was named Library Achiever of the Year recently by the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). Ms Cleary is pictured above with, left, Queensland Library Supplies’ Noela Foote and, right, Queensland Library Promotion Council’s Sue Hutley. The trio was photographed by QUT Community Services Librarian Barbara Ewers
Cuts to the higher education budget would inevitably hit the young hardest, according to QUT’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Dennis Gibson.
Professor Gibson also criticised the timing of the expected Commonwealth cuts which meant the precise implications of cuts to institutions’ 1997 budgets would not be revealed until late this year.
While the Government would announce a higher education lump sum allocation in the August 20 Budget, universities would only discover their individual positions after detailed negotiations with the Department of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs are completed, which may not be until mid-December.
“This places the universities in an impossible position,” Professor Gibson said. “We will only have a few weeks to make decisions about drastic and immediate reductions in spending.”
Professor Gibson said the expected cuts would almost certainly lead to higher HECS fees, fewer places for new students and fewer opportunities for younger staff.
“All these things are a direct impost on the young,” Professor Gibson said. “The unfair thing is the ‘baby boomers’ got higher education free. Their children will have to pay off a significant HECS debt before they can contemplate other financial commitments like a mortgage.
“The cuts could also have a disproportionate effect on younger staff who tend to be on contract and are more vulnerable than older staff who often have the protection of tenure.”
Professor Gibson said that, in Queensland, demand from qualified applicants for university places had been steadily increasing and that the promise of extra places over the coming three years would have met some of that need.
“We thought we had growth sorted out for the next three years, but next year it will be impossible to achieve sizeable budget savings without reducing student numbers,” he said.
“Over the past 12 years, Government funding to universities has effectively fallen by 11 per cent per student. It is plain silly to suggest we can come up with another 12 per cent in such a short time without reducing student places.”
96148SR2
But, as Ms Maddicks explained, the cardiac unit’s staff did everything they could to explain the terms and the women themselves said they valued special input from their older team mate David Lu.
“David was one of the first patients to have a transplant at this hospital,”
Ms Maddicks said, “in fact, he was our ‘number five’ and is so well known around this place that some staff know him only by that nickname.”
Mr Lu, who was born in Vietnam in 1955 and settled in Australia in 1979, said he was pleased to add what he knew about the unit and how it worked to the team project.
“When I got my new heart, I saw all the paperwork that followed me around. So, when I was lying there, I decided there must have been something I could do about it,” he explained.
After his surgery, the former labourer and glass-fitter set about educating himself, initially via a Certificate of Office Fundamentals at the Queensland College of Art and an Associate Diploma in Business
Computing at Yeronga TAFE before starting his bachelor’s degree and majoring in Information Systems.
It was Mr Lu’s idea to try to help the Prince Charles’ team in the first instance.
“At first I thought I’d do it on my own time,” he said.
“At the end of last year, we each decided to do a project and got together to discuss our options,” Ms Fong explained.
“David brought up his idea and we thought we’d go with it.”
Ms Chung said that the team felt their project was for a worthwhile cause “and that something good would come out of our work”.
The three set about their 14-week project with the blessing of their supervisor and the keen co-operation of the Prince Charles team.
According to Ms Chung, one small obstacle the team faced at the start of the semester was that it had little or no knowledge of the software which was eventually to provide the framework for their system, Microsoft’s Access.
That situation was quickly rectified and the team has since built a three- stage system that medical and administrative staff can easily use to
track heart failure patients, pre- transplant records, transplant information, donor details and post- transplant records.
The trio have created a system which features a distinctive opening screen, simple button bars, quick l i sts a nd eas y en t r y p oi n ts f or medical and administrative staff to enter details.
Their first module — the Referral Patient Information System — has been completed. Their second, the T r a n s p l a n t P a t i e n t I n f o r m a t i o n System is nearing completion and the third stage, which will enable long-term analysis of patient data to show trends, will most likely become a pet project for the students in their own time.
“Eventually we hope they will use the information on a laptop which can be taken around as required, for example when the medical team here does a heart retrieval,” Mr Lu said.
“They have been very good to me here at the hospital, so I’m pleased to have been able to do something in return. In fact, I’ve really enjoyed this project — just ask my wife. I’m more at university than at home these days.”
His team mates agreed they had learned a lot from the project, too.
“We had to spend a lot of time analysing, designing and checking w i t h t h e c l i e n t , ” M s C h u n g explained, “but even if it only helps in a small way, then we’ll all feel that it’s been worth it.”
Ms Fong, who is planning to u n d e r t a k e h e r h o n o u r s i n Information Technology next year, said the project had given her a unique insight into a “real-world”
situation with an important outcome.
“What you learn at university is the ideal but, in practice, you need t o t a k e i n t o c o n s i d e r a t i o n t h e client’s needs and the fact that those needs might change as the project progresses, so then you get to learn how to compromise constructively,”
Ms Fong said.
Mr Smyth said the university sought to have its students undertake project work for organisations which needed assistance on tasks that would otherwise not be done.
“ W h i l e w e ’ d n e v e r w a n t t o undercut commercial enterprises with what we do, clients like the Prince Charles Hospital just don’t
have the budget for projects like these,” he explained.
“ T h a n k f u l l y , t h e A u s t r a l i a n Computer Society and commercial contractors recognise that such p r o j e c t s p r e s e n t v a l u a b l e opportunities for students to be involved in important and real work.”
With the northside hospital about to commence lung transplants in J u n e — a n d t h e u n i t r e c e n t l y renamed the Queensland Heart and L u n g T r a n s p l a n t U n i t — M s M a d d i c k s s a i d t h e n u m b e r o f patients being monitored was set to escalate and the team’s new system would be put to good use as soon as it was finished.
“ T h e g o o d t h i n g a b o u t a n y transplant unit is that they’re really good with keeping records of vital information about patients,” Ms Maddicks said.
“We have all our own forms for collecting these histories and, long- term, what this new system the students have designed will do is allow us to look at all that data and e x a m i n e t r e n d s . T h a t w i l l b e extremely useful for us.”
From page 1
. . . students help streamline transplant patient records
Collaboration with industry pays off – Stanford professor
A v i s i t i n g p r o f e s s o r f r o m Stanford University extolled the virtues of collaborations between industry and universities at a recent seminar.
P r o f e s s o r M a r t i n F i s c h e r f r o m S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y ’ s S c h o o l o f C i v i l E n g i n e e r i n g , C o n s t r u c t i o n E n g i n e e r i n g a n d M a n a g e m e n t P r o g r a m recently d e l i v e r e d a r e s e a r c h s e m i n a r c a l l e d L i n k i n g D e s i g n a n d C o n s t r u c t i o n w i t h 4 D M o d e l s — I f y o u c a n b u i l d i t v i r t u a l l y , y o u m i g h t b e a b l e t o b u i l d i t i n r e a l i t y at QUT.
P r o f e s s o r F i s c h e r w a s t h e S c h o o l o f C o n s t r u c t i o n M a n a g e m e n t ’ s f i r s t v i s i t i n g p r o f e s s o r . T h e s c h o o l ’ s director of research, Dr Keith H a m p s o n , s a i d t h e s e m i n a r r e v i e w e d c u r r e n t S t a n f o r d r e s e a r c h w h i c h l i n k e d t i m e scheduling with 3D computer- aided drawing simulations to r e v i e w d e s i g n a n d construction issues at different s t a g e s o f a c o n s t r u c t i o n program.
D r H a m p s o n s a i d m a n y l o c a l c o n s t r u c t i o n i n d u s t r y
representatives attended the s e m i n a r a t w h i c h P r o f e s s o r Fischer cited Stanford’s Centre f o r I n t e g r a t e d F a c i l i t y Engineering as an example of s u c c e s s f u l c o l l a b o r a t i o n b e t w e e n a u n i v e r s i t y a n d industry.
I n 1 9 9 3 , D r H a m p s o n completed his doctoral studies a t S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y a n d h a s s i n c e b u i l t o n t h e a s s o c i a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e S c h o o l o f C o n s t r u c t i o n M a n a g e m e n t a n d t h e U S university’s school.
Dr Hampson said QUT would benefit from Professor Fischer’s visit through mutual supervision of PhD students.
He also said it was possible the two institutions could establish s h o r t - t e r m e x c h a n g e s f o r s t u d e n t s a n d c o n t i n u e t o c o l l a b o r a t e o n i n t e r n a t i o n a l research.
Dr Hampson said a videotape of Professor Fischer’s seminar was available from the School of Construction Management.
F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , c a l l (07) 3864 2811.
developing lung cancer, heart disease, hypertension and liver disease than shore- based workers of a similar age.
Contributing factors were found to include long absences from home, shift work, noise vibration and heat, combined with working on an unstable platform.
by Noel Gentner
Another phase has been reached in research being undertaken at QUT into health, stress, and fatigue of employees in the Australian maritime industry.
So far the research team from QUT’s School of Human Movement Studies — under the direction of Professor Tony Parker — has reviewed more than 150 articles relating to health and performance consequences of occupational stress and fatigue in industry.
Their study will also form a part of an international review of health issues in the industry.
The research, which began in 1994, is funded by the Australian Maritime Authority which has expressed concern in the past about the lack of reliable industry- wide data on the existence and/or extent of fatigue and stress-related problems within the national maritime industry.
So far, the team has found current information on the health and well-being of Australian maritime personnel is limited, with most research into the industry originating in Europe or the United States.
Their research also comes at a time when the Australian shipping industry has undergone major structural reform in an attempt to improve efficiency and competitiveness and in the face of a potential overhaul by the new Howard Government.
Recent changes have resulted in reductions of crew numbers on ships, multi-skilling of staff and the retraining of maritime workers. Shipping reforms to date have also changed hours and lengths of duties as well as introduced new technologies into the workplace. The impact of the transformation on the health and well-being of industry personnel has not been systematically investigated, according to senior research officer in the School of Human Movement Studies, Dr Lyle Hubinger, who joined the research team earlier this year.
Dr Hubinger said the research team last year finished the literature review from international studies of the industry.
Pioneering project gets
$25,000 in AusAID
A pioneering project that plans to deliver running water, medical care and business training to eight villages to make life better for more than 2,000 Vietnamese people has been initiated by QUT.
The Faculty of Arts and the School of Social Science each contributed $1,000 towards a January fact-finding trip by QUT lecturer Dr Kathryn Gow and, in the wake of that trip, Dr Gow submitted a proposal to AusAID for projects to improve the third-world conditions her party witnessed in the province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.
The submission was recently approved, with a grant of almost $25,000.
“This is one of the poorest regions in Vietnam — the health care centres and the homes have no water, no toilets and no electricity,” Dr Gow said. “Most of the health stations have no water. The ones that do, have wells, but none of the water is treated and so children are dying from diarrhoea and dehydration.
“The homes have dirt floors, mud walls and thatched roofs. Most homes will have a bed, four little stools, a table and some pots and that’s it.”
Dr Gow is also secretary of the Australian Veterans’ Vietnam Reconstruction Group which will oversee the project.
The AusAID funding will be used to buy and install water purifiers and pumps;
to buy medical equipment and train community health workers; to buy sewing machines and overlockers (for those villagers with some electricity supply to begin local garment-making industries);
and to supply small business training.
Dr Kathryn Gow with a mother-of- pearl picture presented to her by Ba Ria villagers after she and her companions, appalled by the depressing conditions in which handicapped Vietnamese children were living, bought wheelchairs and bikechairs with their own funds
“This year we will be distributing questionnaires to workers (in order) to find out problems which may be unique to the Australian maritime industry,” Dr Hubinger said.
The review of literature has already found seafarers are at greater risk of
Maritime study looks at stress at sea
Researcher Dr Lyle Hubinger takes a break dockside at Hamilton
Dr Hubinger said a comprehensive questionnaire had been compiled andwas now being distributed to 6,000 people involved in the industry.
She said that, prior to the distribution, there had been a considerable amount of work undertaken to obtain the confidence and support of the industry’s unions.
The confidentiality of the questionnaire had been assured with the three unions involved — the Maritime Union of Australia, the Australian Maritime Officers Union and the Australian Institute of Maritime Pilots and Engineers — she explained.
“It is a very lengthy questionnaire which takes about 45 minutes to an hour to complete,” Dr Hubinger said. “It covers all areas of the industry and is particularly focused on the individual’s personal work experience and how the individual generally feels about work.
“I suppose we perceive that, from ashore, working aboard a ship is not stressful, but the stress which seems to occur has a lot to do with the environment in which people are working and sleeping.
“For example, it is a noisy environment, and contains a lot of vibration, confined spaces and a considerable variance in temperatures.”
Dr Hubinger said changes within the industry — with more use of cargo-handling automation techniques resulting in a decrease in crew numbers — could create more stress. She said this also applied to employees previously not in technical areas undergoing extensive retraining to handle automotive procedures.
The work pattern could also contribute, with a cycle of six weeks on board and six weeks at home. A further phase of the study would involve on- board research, she said.
Dr Hubinger said this would entail monitoring particularly stressful periods.
She said she expected to have the questionnaire data analysed by the end of August, with a report then compiled and distributed to the unions and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. This year’s phase formed a part of the medium-term research which would be completed by June 1998, Dr Hubinger said.
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Page 4 INSIDE QUT May 28-July 15, 1996
Who is this man?
This mystery photograph was donated to the History of QUT project team.
If you know who this man is,
what his association with QUT is — or was — and where the photo was taken,
please call Dr Joanne Scott on (07) 3864 5986.
Team delves into QUT’s past Where we’ve come from
1990
Information courtesy of the History of QUT project
Kedron Park Teachers’
College 1961 North Brisbane College of Advanced Education
1972 Queensland
Teachers’
Training College 1914 Kelvin Grove Teachers’
College 1961 Kelvin Grove College of Advanced Education
1976 Brisbane College of Advanced Education
1982 Brisbane
Kindergarten Training
College 1911 Brisbane Kindergarten
Teachers’
College 1965 Brisbane
School of Arts 1849 Brisbane Technical College
1882 Central Technical
College 1908 Queensland
Institute of Technology
1965 Queensland University of
Technology 1989
“With predecessor institutions stretching back to 1849, the history of QUT could map 148 years of rich tertiary and higher-education tradition for Queensland,” Professor Kyle said.
“There’s been a huge interest recently in the history of higher education. Because of the number of predecessor institutions QUT has, this project has value in terms of looking at the development of post-compulsory education in Queensland,” she said.
But QUT’s large number of predecessor institutions and its multi-campus situation had presented challenges to the researchers in their quest for information, Professor Kyle said.
“We need all the help we can get from the community and QUT staff and students,” she said.
“We’ve done about 15 interviews so far and we’ve got quite a few more to do. We’re interested in speaking to people who may have stories, such as people who have retired recently.
“We’re also still trying to reach ex- students from QIT, Central Technical College, Brisbane Kindergarten Teachers’ College, Kelvin Grove Teachers’ College, Kedron Park Teachers’ College, BCAE, Brisbane School of Arts or Brisbane Technical College.”
Professor Kyle said the team had already received many old photographs, letters, journals, student newspapers, staff journals, curriculum material and administrative documents but they could use more.
They are also using material from QUT’s archives, the Queensland State Archives, John Oxley Library, the Creche and Kindergarten Association of Queensland and the History Unit in the Queensland Department of Education.
The project team aimed to have the manuscript ready in December, Professor Kyle said, and they would present a conference paper about the project at the Australian and New by Carmen Myler
Researchers are turning up some interesting facts about QUT and its 13 predecessor institutions in preparing a book about the history of QUT, due for publication next year.
Senior research assistant on the project Dr Joanne Scott said the oral history interviews she did with people over the past year had uncovered some materials which were missing from documentary sources, or which offered a different perspective.
“For example, documents about Kelvin Grove suggest that it was rather a strait-laced institution but the students I’ve interviewed have quite different memories and say that it was actually the radical place of education in Queensland at the time,” she said.
The oral histories demonstrated how things had changed, Dr Scott said, such
as how students used to be banned from walking up the front steps of A Block at Kelvin Grove campus.
Another former student recalled how he and his friends who had lectures in Old Government House used to escape from the low-set windows when they were bored.
These histories indicated things like the changing nature of formality between teachers and students, and the difference in past lecture theatres and today’s “smart” lecture theatres, the project’s leader — and head of the School of Cultural and Policy Studies
— Professor Noeline Kyle, explained.
She said the project — which she worked on with Dr Scott, Dr Catherine Manathunga and the Dean of Education, Professor Alan Cumming — was important in documenting QUT’s history, as well as in the wider context of post- compulsory education in the State.
Mr Crane said he would bring h i s k n o w l e d g e a n d e x p e r i e n c e , particularly in the field of early intervention practices, to the task force.
The Prime Minister said the task force would operate as a small e x p e r t b o d y t o a d v i s e h i m a n d relevant ministers on what pilots to undertake.
M e a n w h i l e , t h e t a s k f o r c e ’ s terms of reference also require it t o d e v e l o p a n a c t i o n r e s e a r c h program, in conjunction with the pilots, which will identify best practice in service provision, the a s s e s s m e n t o f e l i g i b i l i t y f o r i n c o m e s u p p o r t , a n d e a r l y i n t e r v e n t i o n a n d m e d i a t i o n strategies for young people who a r e h o m e l e s s o r a t r i s k o f becoming homeless.
T h e t a s k f o r c e w i l l a l s o b e expected to monitor the operation of the pilots and their progress and a d v i s e o n t h e a c h i e v e m e n t o r o t h e r w i s e o f t h e o u t c o m e s specified for the pilots.
In addition, the pilots — and the findings arising from the action r e s e a r c h p r o g r a m — w i l l b e e v a l u a t e d b y t h e t a s k f o r c e i n order to provide advice on a broad and ongoing response to the needs o f y o u n g h o m e l e s s p e o p l e a n d t h e i r f a m i l i e s t h r o u g h a f i n a l report to be completed by October 30, 1998.
T h e P r i m e M i n i s t e r s a i d h e e n v i s a g e d t h e t a s k f o r c e w o u l d c o m p l e t e i t s i n i t i a l d e l i b e r a t i o n s a n d r e p o r t o n t h e f r a m e w o r k f o r t h e p r o p o s e d p i l o t s b y t h e e n d o f J u n e t h i s y e a r , w i t h t h e p i l o t s b e i n g e s t a b l i s h e d b y t h e e n d o f A u g u s t a n d r u n n i n g f o r t w o y e a r s .
Mr Howard said the pilots would be practical and compassionate in n a t u r e , a n d w o u l d e n c o u r a g e
. . . lecturer to join PM’s youth homeless task force
From page 1
Campus quickies
For readers who spied a woman with a trolley snatching large bundles of Inside QUTs from their very stands just after they were distributed a fortnight ago — relax.
It was only the red-faced editor of this august publication performing an urgent recall of the edition following the discovery of an error in film production.
Eagle-eyed earlybirds who actually got to see the incorrect copy of the edition would have noticed that the stories on Page 2 were repeated from an earlier edition (but with a fresh cartoon). Editor was not amused.
Paper reprinted and re-distributed a day later and a few egos in for repair in the meantime!
Lewis family and friends thank memorial bursary supporters
by Carmen Myler
Friends, family and colleagues of the late QUT senior lecturer in Physics Trevor Lewis gathered earlier this month to celebrate the establishment of the Trevor Lewis Memorial Bursary and to thank contributors.
T h e i d e a o f a b u r s a r y w a s p r o p o s e d i n N o v e m b e r 1 9 9 5 , following the untimely death of Mr Lewis, who was also a QUT Council member.
H o s t e d b y t h e h e a d o f t h e School of Physics, Professor Jim Pope, the function on May 15 was attended by QUT’s Chancellor, D r C h e r r e l l H i r s t , V i c e - C h a n c e l l o r P r o f e s s o r D e n n i s Gibson, Mr Lewis’ wife Dr Di Lewis, a lecturer in the School of Management and their three sons Peter, David and Greg.
T o d a t e , $ 1 1 , 3 6 0 h a s b e e n raised for the bursary through the QUT Foundation, more than half of that in donations.
P r o f e s s o r G i b s o n s a i d Q U T would match these funds, “dollar- f o r - d o l l a r ” , w h i c h b r o u g h t t h e total funds raised to $22,720.
The Vice-Chancellor said the Lewis family had kindly donated the remainder of a QUT grant for outstanding contribution in the area of academic affairs — which had earlier been awarded to Mr L e w i s i n 1 9 9 4 b u t n o t f u l l y expended at the time of his death
— to the bursary fund.
He said the bursary would be awarded annually to an honours student in physics who “embodies Trevor’s drive for excellence”.
Professor Pope, senior lecturer i n p h y s i c s R o s s D u n l o p , Professor Gibson and Peter Lewis
s p o k e a t t h e f u n c t i o n , e a c h s h a r i n g t h e i r m e m o r i e s o f Mr Lewis and his 28-year career at QUT.
P r o f e s s o r G i b s o n r e c a l l e d M r L e w i s ’ p a s s i o n f o r h i s w o r k a n d f o r c r i c k e t , a n d h i s d e d i c a t i o n t o h i s r o l e o n t h e Q U T C o u n c i l .
P e t e r L e w i s t h a n k e d s t a f f , colleagues and friends who had supported the bursary.
He said he felt that his family was a “QUT family”, as his father and mother both worked here and he, his two brothers and mother had studied here.
Further donations to the Trevor Lewis Memorial Bursary can be made by contacting the School of Physics on (07) 3864 2328.
Alternatively, contact Sharon Norris in the Development Office on (07) 3864 1863.
QUT Vice-Chancellor Dennis Gibson, Trevor’s wife and School of
Management lecturer Dr Di Lewis and eldest son Peter share a quiet moment YOUR NEXT ISSUE OF
INSIDE QUT
Due to the semester break, the next Inside QUT will be
circulated from July 16.
The editorial deadline for this edition will be
Friday, July 7 participation by young people on
a voluntary basis.
Mr Crane said the task force h ad a l re ad y m e t once and wa s
“ b u s i l y w o r k i n g ” t o w a r d establishing a framework for the pilots.
H e s a i d t h e w o r k h e w a s i n v o l v e d i n w o u l d c o n t r i b u t e greatly to his teaching practice at QUT.
“It’s a unique opportunity to be h i g h l y i n f o r m e d a b o u t w h e r e policy is up to and being involved in its development,” Mr Crane said.
“Linking, nationally, to service p r o v i d e r s a n d k e y p e o p l e involved in policy development w i l l b r i n g c l e a r b e n e f i t s t o students in the School of Social Science.
“ H o m e l e s s n e s s f o r y o u n g p e o p l e i s l i n k e d t o a r a n g e o f i s s u e s — s u c h a s c h i l d a b u s e , u n e m p l o y m e n t , s c h o o l p o l i c i e s and practices, family policy, and the availability of a number of s e r v i c e s i n c l u d i n g f a m i l y c o u n s e l l i n g a n d m e d i a t i o n services.
“ S o , t h e t a s k f o r c e i n v o l v e s c o n s i d e r a t i o n o f a v e r y b r o a d r a n g e o f p o l i c y a r e a s o f relevance to young people,” Mr Crane said.
Zealand History of Education Conference in July.
She said the project would also include a photographic exhibition and a book of photographs and illustrations, as a companion to the main text.
Professor Kyle said the team was negotiating with a publisher to produce the book which would have academic and popular appeal.
“We would put it in the genre of public history,” she said.
QUT staff are invited to attend a colloquium at the Centre for Policy
and Leadership Studies in Education to discuss the project and starting points for the writing of the history.
The colloquium, Writing a History of Post-Compulsory Education in Queensland, will be held tomorrow (Wednesday, May 29) in room E416, E Block, Kelvin Grove campus, from noon to 1.30pm. For further details, phone Anne Wilson on (07) 3864 5959.
For more details about contributing your story or memorabilia to the project, phone Dr Joanne Scott or Dr Catherine Manathunga on (07) 3864 5986.
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A DVERTISEMENT
by Andrea Hammond
QUT’s School of Nursing has launched a ground-breaking series of videos designed to pit n u r s i n g s t u d e n t s ’ d e c i s i o n - m a k i ng s k ill s again s t ‘ r e al- life’ patient situations.
The problem-solving series, thought to the first of its kind, w i l l b e u s e d f o r t e a c h i n g nursing at QUT and is to be o f f e r e d t o u n i v e r s i t i e s a n d h o s p i t a l s t h r o u g h o u t Australia.
In addition, this six-video collection will be showcased to t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l t e a c h i n g m a r k e t a t T h e S o c i e t y F o r T e a c h i n g a n d L e a r n i n g i n Higher Education conference i n O t t a w a , C a n a d a , n e x t month.
S c h o o l o f N u r s i n g s e n i o r l e c t u r e r a n d p r o j e c t l e a d e r Rob Thornton said the videos i n t h e s e r i e s p r e s e n t e d s t u d e n t s w i t h a r a n g e o f specific situations, such as an anxious client with prostate cancer who needed reassuring or a client who was confused a n d r e q u i r e d c o u n s e l l i n g support.
H e s a i d a c c o m p a n y i n g w o r k b o o k s w i t h r e l a t e d q u e s t i o n s a n d a c t i v i t i e s encouraged students to reflect on clinical situations and then discuss them with their peers.
“This whole concept derived from the fact that we needed t o ‘ f r e e z e - f r a m e ’ n u r s i n g a c t i o n s o s t u d e n t s c o u l d i n t e r r e l a t e , p i c k u p v i t a l c u e s i n a n o n - t h r e a t e n i n g environment and make some c l i n i c a l d e c i s i o n s b a s e d o n t h o s e c u e s , ” M r T h o r n t o n said.
“In the reality of nursing p r a c t i c e , t h e s e t h i n g s p a s s very rapidly. For the novice,
one needs to slow the process down and videos are an ideal way of doing that.
“We have attempted to depict
‘ r e a l - l i f e ’ s c e n a r i o s t h a t nursing students in tertiary i n s t i t u t i o n s r i g h t r o u n d A u s t r a l i a — a n d s t u d e n t s overseas — can relate to.”
O t h e r v i d e o s c e n a r i o s i n c l u d e d e a l i n g w i t h a c o n f u s e d p a t i e n t r e c e i v i n g treatment for pneumonia; a cardiac patient brought to a b i g c i t y h o s p i t a l f r o m t h e c o u n t r y ; a c o n f u s e d orthopaedic patient who does n o t s p e a k E n g l i s h p e r f e c t l y a n d a p a t i e n t f a c i n g difficulties with independent living following the death of his wife.
“ T h e r e a l f o c u s o f t h e s e videos is the client; to allow t h e s t u d e n t s t o h a v e s o m e interaction with the client and to make some decisions about w h a t t h e y a r e g o i n g t o d o a b o u t t h e i r p a r t i c u l a r situation,” Mr Thornton said.
“ T h e y a r e n o t t r a i n i n g videos in any sense — they are more a vignette, a stimulation f o r c o n v e r s a t i o n a n d d i s c u s s i o n — a n d w e h a v e structured them in such a way that they can be stopped at certain scenes.”
T h e $ 3 9 , 0 0 0 p r o j e c t w a s sponsored by the Committee for the Advancement of University Teaching (CAUT) and included team members Rob Thornton, Sandra Dunn, Tina Thornton, L i n d a M u n g o m e r y , K a r e n Theobald and Jane O’Leary.
P r o f e s s i o n a l B r i s b a n e - b a s e d a c t o r s j o i n e d Q U T s t a f f v o l u n t e e r s a n d d r a m a students to make the videos, w h i c h w e r e p r o d u c e d b y QUT’s Educational Television Unit.
Oodgeroo Unit plays key role in international peace conference
were relevant to the day-to-day life of individuals in the community, as well as academic teaching, learning and research.
A lecturer in QUT’s School of M e d i a a n d J o u r n a l i s m , H e l e n Yeates, has been involved in the management and media links for the conference.
Ms Yeates said there were 18 commission groups within IPRA which had their own particular focus of interest and these sessions would run parallel during the conference program, allowing delegates to move between issues.
She said there had been strong international support to assist people from developing countries to attend.
“Subsidies had been provided for s o m e a c a d e m i c s w h o w o u l d otherwise not have been able to travel to Australia,” Ms Yeates said.
“It is an academic conference first and foremost about peace research that is being carried out in a number of institutions around the world, but it also is a big cultural event.”
She said Nobel Peace Laureate Professor Joseph Rotblat would not be able to attend the conference as o r i g i n a l l y i n t e n d e d , b u t arrangements had been made for a video-tape interview to be made with him in London which would be shown at the conference.
Speakers at the conference would include well-known peace educator P r o f e s s o r B e t t y R e a r d o n f r o m C o l u m b i a U n i v e r s i t y , M o n a s h University Professor Peter Singer the founder of Animal Liberation, a n d A b o r i g i n a l S o c i a l J u s t i c e Commissioner Michael Dodson, she said.
Mr Synott said in the week prior to the conference a series of guest
speaker sessions would be held at QUT.
He said speakers at this venue would include Valerie Dovey, a p e a c e e d u c a t i o n i s t f r o m S o u t h Africa, and Alph Sekaku, a Hopi leader from the United States.
Ms Dovey would be presenting a paper on innovations in anti-racist e d u c a t i o n i n S o u t h A f r i c a , M s Yeates confirmed.
She said the conference would have a strong Aboriginal indigenous theme.
The opening ceremony would i n v o l v e a n o f f i c i a l A b o r i g i n a l welcome by Brisbane elders and performers, Mr Synott said, and throughout the conference there w o u l d b e s e v e r a l h i g h p r o f i l e i n d i g e n o u s e v e n t s , i n c l u d i n g performances by Maori and New Guinean groups.
M r S y n o t t s a i d t h e p e a c e conference represented the first big venture for the Oodgeroo Unit onto t h e w o r l d s t a g e i n o r d e r t o internationalise local Australian indigenous issues.
He said this would enable the unit’s work to be seen in a broader global perspective.
The conference is expected to draw delegates from around 90 different countries with a large r e p r e s e n t a t i o n f r o m u n d e r - developed countries.
Mr Synott said the IPRA was an international community of scholars and
“in some way it represents a sort of a model of how the world could work”.
The 16th General Conference of the International Peace Research Association will be held at the University of Queensland at St Lucia.
For more details, contact Mr Synott via email on [email protected] or call (07) 3864 5993.
(L-R) Rob Thornton, Tina Thornton, Linda Mungomery, Jane O’Leary and Karen Theobald
by Noel Gentner
T h e f i n a l t o u c h e s f o r a m a j o r international peace conference are being made by organisers at QUT and the University of Queensland.
Expected to attract more than 600 d e l e g a t e s , t h e 1 6 t h G e n e r a l Conference of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) will be held in Brisbane from July 8 to 12.
It is the first time Australia has been the venue for the conference which has been held every two years since 1965.
The conference theme, Creating Nonviolent Futures has attracted a number of internationally prominent guest speakers addressing issues including, peace building in Asia- Pacific, gender and peace, youth and peace and indigenous peoples.
T h e c o n f e r e n c e ’ s P r o g r a m Director John Synott — from QUT’s O o d g e r o o U n i t — h a s b e e n responsible for the co-ordination and organisation of the academic, cultural and social aspects of the conference, along with the Chair of t h e C o n f e r e n c e O r g a n i s i n g Committee, Ralph Summy, from the U n i v e r s i t y o f Q u e e n s l a n d ’ s Department of Government.
Q U T ’ s O o d g e r o o U n i t i s sponsoring local and international in di g en o u s p a r t i c i p a t i o n a t t h e conference and four academics from the unit are presenting papers.
Mr Synott said the approaches of organisations such as IPRA were a strong antidote to the culture of violence and the perpetuation of violence within society today.
He said the conference would provide an awareness of peace studies and peace education which
by Andrea Hammond
Two students undertaking separate postgraduate chemistry research projects at QUT this year share a special bond.
T r a n D o n g P h u o n g a n d P h a n T h i K h a n h H o a , b o t h m u m s i n t h e i r 3 0 s , h a v e h a d t o l e a v e s m a l l c h i l d r e n w i t h t h e i r h u s b a n d s a n d f a m i l i e s i n V i e t n a m w h i l e t h e y u n d e r t a k e M a s t e r o f A p p l i e d S c i e n c e ( C h e m i s t r y ) s t u d i e s i n B r i s b a n e o v e r t h e n e x t t w o y e a r s .
But both know their research work is vitally important for their country.
From a country where rice is a central part of everyone’s diet, Ms Tran is studying properties and characteristics of Vietnamese rice, under the supervision of School of Chemistry senior lecturer Dr Serge Kokot.
H e r p r o j e c t f o c u s e s o n t h e p r o p e r t i e s o f t r a c e m e t a l s , i n c l u d i n g h e a v y m e t a l s , i n Vietnamese rice.
“ T h e r e a r e a l o t o f w a y s i n which heavy metals can come in c o n t a c t w i t h r i c e , b e c a u s e i n Vietnam the roads run straight t h r o u g h t h e p a d d y f i e l d s , ” Ms Tran said.
“ E v e n s m a l l d o s e s o f h e a v y metals can cause health problems and, in Vietnam, there is a lot of concern about this.
“ W h a t I a m p a r t i c u l a r l y interested in is seeing how the heavy metal content varies with environmental and geographical conditions.
“ M y w o r k w i l l t a k e i n t o consideration different regions, d i f f e r e n t c l i m a t i c c o n d i t i o n s , different fertilising conditions and possibly make some deductions as to what are important contributing elements for the quality of rice in particular regions.”
Ms Tran and Dr Kokot have r e q u e s t e d a l i c e n c e t o i m p o r t Vietnamese rice, which will be c o l l e c t e d b y t h e V i e t n a m Agricultural Science Institute and the Food Crops Research Centre, which are both based in Hanoi.
A g r o n o m i s t s w i l l s u p p l y samples and environmental data from up to 200 different regions.
On the other hand, Ms Phan is studying the biodegradation of
“environmentally friendly” starch a n d c e l l u l o s e p l a s t i c s b e i n g manufactured in a joint project by Q U T a n d t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Queensland.
Her project is being supervised by School of Chemistry associate lecturer Deidre Stuart and could b e e x t r e m e l y u s e f u l i n h e r
homeland, where plastics disposal is a growing problem.
“I am looking to see whether these plastics degrade better than m o r e c o n v e n t i o n a l n o n - biodegradable substances,” Ms Phan said.
“ T h e y c o u l d b e u s e f u l f o r things that are used once — like p l a s t i c s h o p p i n g b a g s , k n i v e s , forks and plates — so long as the processing which is involved to m a k e t h e m a u s e a b l e p l a s t i c doesn’t change their properties too much.”
M s P h a n s a i d t h e Q U T / U Q - d e s i g n e d p l a s t i c s m i g h t o n l y t a k e a b o u t s i x m o n t h s t o b i o d e g r a d e , w h e r e a s conventional plastics take about 20 years.
(L-R) Dr Serge Kokot, Tran Dong Phuong, Phan Thi Khanh Hoa and Deidre Stuart discussing the progress of the students’ research
Vital chemistry projects entice Vietnamese students here
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Video series allows
trial runs for trainees
Page 6 INSIDE QUT May 28-July 15, 1996
Exhibition highlights art through the eyes of a child
by Andrea Hammond
V i b r a n t p a i n t i n g s o f b r i g h t l y - b u r n i n g l a n t e r n s , g l i t t e r i n g f e s t i v a l s a n d c h e e k y m o n k e y s make up a colourful children’s art exhibition being co-ordinated by QUT.
Together Under One Sun: The Australia-China Children’s Art E x c h a n g e f e a t u r e s 1 0 0 s u c h pieces as well as a spectacular, 100m banner painted by Chinese children from four to eight years of age.
T h e b a n n e r a n d p a i n t i n g s d i s p l a y a s t a r t l i n g t e c h n i c a l b r i l l a n c e a n d h a v e a l r e a d y a t t r a c t e d i n t e r e s t i n t h e community from academics and parents.
To be showcased to Brisbane c h i l d r e n a n d p a r e n t s a t t h e Queensland Museum as part of the Out of the Box festival from June 10 to 16, the exhibition has b e e n c o - o r d i n a t e d b y Q U T ’ s School of Early Childhood senior lecturer Dr Barbara Piscitelli.
Dr Piscitelli said the project was a celebration of the creativity and joy of childhood through the art of young children.
Paintings by 100 Australian c h i l d r e n f r o m 1 4 B r i s b a n e s c h o o l s , p r e s c h o o l s a n d kindergartens showing visions of their culture, families, hopes and d r e a m s w e r e d i s p l a y e d b e s i d e Chinese children’s work at an exhibition in Hubei, China, in October last year.
“When we started this project, what we really wanted to do was t o g e t p e o p l e t o s e e t h a t children’s experiences are the same, but they are also different, depending on the culture in which t h e y ( t h e c h i l d r e n ) l i v e , ” D r Piscitelli said.
“What we discovered is that Australian children’s work is so free and uninhibited — just like t h e w h o l e c o u n t r y — a n d t h e Chinese children’s work is much more controlled.
“The children in China have m u c h m o r e a r t e d u c a t i o n , s p e c i f i c a l l y r e l a t e d t o h o w t o draw and paint, so their work is just astonishing in its technical brilliance.
“It’s just amazing: their lines are so bold, their colours are so bright, their compositions are so un be l ie va b l y wel l -p r opo r t i o ne d and visually very pleasing.
“They (the paintings) are totally d i f f e r e n t b e c a u s e t h e c u l t u r a l values in the two countries are totally different.”
It was during the opening of the j o i n t e x h i b i t i o n a t t h e H u b e i Exhibition Centre’s art gallery that 100 Chinese children under e i g h t y e a r s o f a g e p a i n t e d t h e spectacular 100-metre banner.
“It only took them about an hour and a half — these kids just sat down and painted intently, even though they were surrounded by people, television cameras and p h o t o g r a p h e r s — i t w a s j u s t amazing,” Dr Piscitelli said.
Australian school children will have the chance to display some o f t h e i r o w n b a n n e r - p a i n t i n g skills, as well as try their hands a t c a l l i g r a p h y , l a n t e r n - m a k i n g and origami at the Queensland Museum during the Out of the Box festival.
T h e p a i n t e d ‘ A u s s i e b a n n e r ’ (which will also be 100 metres l o n g ) w i l l b e p r e s e n t e d t o t h e H u b e i K i n d e r g a r t e n T e a c h e r s School in China as a permanent gift.
Dr Piscitelli said the paintings and drawings by Chinese children r e c e i v e d i n s t a n t a c c l a i m w h e n t h e y w e r e e x h i b i t e d a t t h e T o o w o o m b a R e g i o n a l G a l l e r y from January 31 to March 3.
“ I n T o o w o o m b a a l o t o f t h e m o t h e r s w e r e s a y i n g ‘ t h e k i d s couldn’t possibly have done this’.
The truth is they did, because t h e y ( t h e C h i n e s e ) t e a c h differently to the way we teach,”
she said.
Paintings by 40 of the Chinese children will be taken on a six- month Queensland Arts Council t o u r o f c o a s t a l a n d o u t b a c k c e n t r e s b e f o r e j o i n i n g t h e A u s t r a l i a n c o m p o n e n t o f t h e exchange collection in the QUT children’s art archives.
QUT has the only university- b a s e d a r c h i v e o f c h i l d r e n ’ s artwork in Australia.
by Andrea Hammond
L o o k i n g b a c k o n h e r r i s e t o w o r l d a c c l a i m , o n e o f A u s t r a l i a ’ s m o s t e m i n e n t c e r a m i s t s , G w y n H a n s s e n P i g o t t , a c k n o w l e d g e s Q U T p l a y e d a s m a l l b u t v i t a l r o l e i n h e r a r t i s t i c d e v e l o p m e n t .
Ms Hanssen Pigott recalled her t i m e a s h o n o r a r y a r t i s t - i n - residence at the former Brisbane College of Advanced Education f r o m 1 9 8 1 t o 1 9 8 8 , w h e r e s h e w o r k e d o u t o f t h e B C A E ’ s K e l v i n G r o v e s t u d i o s a n d a l s o t a u g h t c e r a m i c s t u d e n t s p a r t time.
S p e a k i n g f r o m h e r s t u d i o i n Netherdale, tucked away in the Mackay hinterland, Ms Hanssen P i g o t t s a i d h e r t i m e a t K e l v i n Grove was very important for the development of her craft.
“I was given a lot of help there a n d i t w a s , q u i t e s i m p l y , a fantastic time,” she said.
“My residency there allowed me to be in Brisbane, to build a kiln for wood firing — which is my speciality
— and to be at the college.
“It was also at that time I met many other artists in Brisbane and s o i t w i d e n e d m y c i r c l e o f i n t e r e s t s c o n s i d e r a b l y — u n t i l then I had been working mostly in isolation.
“ A n d i t w a s a t t h a t t i m e I started my still life groups (of p o t s ) a n d w h e n t h e r e w a s t h e beginning of a wider interest in my work in Australia, which I think is important.”
forming important aspects of my art,” she said.
M s H a n s s e n P i g o t t ’ s a r t i s t i c works are being featured at the Q u e e n s l a n d A r t G a l l e r y u n t i l June 23, with more than 60 of her individual and group works i n a n e x h i b i t i o n o f e n o r m o u s scope.
T h i s e x h i b i t i o n i n c l u d e s a d i v e r s e s e l e c t i o n o f c e r a m i c b o w l s , j u g s , c u p s , s a u c e r s , c a s s e r o l e d i s h e s , t e a p o t s , m u g s a n d b o t t l e s a n d s t i l l l i f e g r o u p s .
T h e g a l l e r y ’ s D e c o r a t i v e A r t s c u r a t o r , G l e n n C o o k e , s a i d M s H a n s s e n P i g o t t ’ s w o r k s i n t h e g a l l e r y ’ s c u r r e n t e x h i b i t i o n w e r e t h e c u l m i n a t i o n o f h e r d e d i c a t i o n a n d c o m m i t m e n t t o h e r c r a f t .
“ M s H a n s s e n P i g o t t d r a w s o n t h e t r a d i t i o n o f f u n c t i o n a l c e r a m i c s t o p r o d u c e r e f i n e d w o r k s o f a r t w h i c h a r e a e s t h e t i c a l l y e l e g a n t a n d d e l i c a t e i n a p p e a r a n c e a n d w h i c h t h e p o t t e r f e e l s c a n b e u s e d , ” Mr Cooke s a i d .
A n e x h i b i t i o n o f Ms Hanssen Pigott’s w o r k w a s d i s p l a y e d i n N e w Y o r k e a r l i e r t h i s y e a r a n d h a s a l s o b e e n r e c e n t l y e x h i b i t e d i n V a n c o u v e r , L o n d o n a n d s e v e r a l o t h e r c i t i e s i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s .
M s H a n s s e n P i g o t t ’ s artistic work s are held in major public a n d p r i v a t e c o l l e c t i o n s t h r o u g h o u t A u s t r a l i a a n d overseas.
B e f o r e s h e c a m e t o K e l v i n Grove, Ms Hanssen Pigott had al re a dy sol id l y e stabl ish ed h er n a m e i n E n g l a n d a n d F r a n c e , where she lived and worked for nearly 15 years.
S h e s a i d h e r w o r k s i n c e h e r time at Kelvin Grove had been c h a r a c t e r i s e d b y s t i l l l i f e groupings — arranged groups of individually-thrown pieces which took into account the form, edge
and colour relationships of the works.
“My work is a combination of painting, sculpture and pottery, with my personal response to the c l a y , f o r m , g l a z e a n d f i r i n g Ceramist Gwyn Hanssen Pigott examines the catalogue for her 40-year retrospective exhibition at the Queensland Art Gallery which will run until June 23
(L-R) Queensland Museum’s Bronwun Searly and QUT’s Dr Barbara Piscitelli examine some of the pieces in the Together Under One Sun exhibition
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