College of Creative Arts graduate stories

Graduate Stories Massey University College of Creative Arts Toi Rauwha¯rangi

‘Ma¯i Te Po¯, Ki Te Ao¯ Ma¯rama’ – From Novice to Expert

Study Art and Design at Massey

Graduating with a degree from

You can choose from a comprehensive

Massey’s College of Creative Arts

range of programmes that cover :

puts you amongst New Zealand’s most successful designers and fine artists, and sets you on a pathway to a huge variety of careers.

Industrial design; spatial design; textile design; fashion design; photography; visual communication design (including advertising, digital media, illustration and

When you study here at Massey you’ll

graphic design); Toi Atea: ma¯ori art and

be mixing with other passionate art

design; visual and material culture, critical

and design-obsessed students.

and contextual studies and fine arts

You’ll be encouraged to explore your

(including contemporary art practices;

non-conformist ideas, and reinforced

drawing; painting; photography; and

for the independent development and

sculpture) and new in 2015*, creative

expression of these. You’ll be taught by

media production (including a full range

artists, designers and other creative

of digital and interactive media papers),

practitioners who are well connected

and commercial music (including majors

around the world.

in music practice, music technology and music industry). * Subject to University and CUAP approval

creative.massey.ac.nz facebook.com/cocamassey

3D animator / concept artist / industrial designer / graphic designer gallery assistant / advertising executive / artist / pattern maker website designer / multi media designer / product developer illustrator / print design and company branding archivist / filmmaker creative director / type setter and digital printer / event planner

65% of our Bachelor of Design graduates are in full time employment 6 months after graduation textile designer / film and television editor / marketing executive historian / interior designer / information architect / sculptor animator / online game and apps designer / fashion retail assistant compositor / fashion designer / transport designer / sound designer curator magazine stylist / photographer / teacher / art director.

GRAEME OFFORD BDes (Hons) 2008 Graphic Design Gold, DINZ Best Award 2008 Graeme has spent the past six years working in New York for consultancies like the Macquarie Group, Cowan, Pearlfisher and Beardwood & Co as a freelance graphic designer and art director. He is currently living in Sydney where he is a freelance designer with Barker Gray. ‘A set of contemporary versal characters designed to tell a nostalgic New Zealand narrative.’

ALEXANDER WASTNEY BDes (Hons) 2008 Industrial Design Silver, DINZ Best Award 2008 Gold, Dyson Product Design Award 2008 I was employed as a designer at Howard Wright manufacturing in New Plymouth for two years, before heading overseas where I spent 14 months at leading transportation design company PriestmanGoode in London, designing aerospace products for major global airlines. I really enjoyed interpreting airline brands and learning how to develop these into a compelling spatial experience. It was hugely satisfying to push the boundaries in air travel, addressing the existing and future pain points with meaningful design solutions, and seeing projects through from concept to on-board fit outs.

In 2013 I moved to New York to work as Senior Industrial Designer Smart Design, an award-winning innovation and consulting firm with studios in New York, San Francisco and Barcelona. I really enjoy the variety that the industrial design profession offers me, working on something new every few months. I am passionate about designing products and experiences that have longevity, and believe that designers need to understand the bigger context and cost of what is created, the cost to the environment with the materials and technology used, the impact on communities and cultures using these products and services.

The product and digital world are increasingly overlapping and we are now in the age of “the connected device” or “internet of things” where everyday products like glasses or fridges have the capability of being connected to the cloud. Design consultancies now have a real need for and interest in Interaction Designers and the skill sets they can bring to the process.

PRISCILLA EVA MCCLINTOCK Nga-ti Porou BDes (Hons) 2011 Fashion Design and Business Priscilla completed an internship with Deadly Ponies and was subsequently employed there as a production assistant. She has been their production manager since 2012.

LAUREN SKOGSTAD BDes (Hons) Spatial Design 2009

Initially I found work as a web designer at a small web development

I then travelled to London where I joined the web team at the

company in Wellington, and as a tutor in spatial, exhibition and

University of the Arts before a new position as Lead Graphic and

multimedia design at a number of tertiary institutions before

Interactive Designer at Doug Richards School for Startups finally

Digital Designer at IE Agency, Melbourne

returning to Massey for my Masters degree.

brought my two passions – web interactive graphic design and

My design degree at Massey allowed me to explore and challenge

My thesis project was a monstrous 10m long red dress, designed

the boundaries of Spatial Design, and to find my own niche

as a performative study of the polyrhythmic qualities of the city.

in the discipline. My hard work as a student was recognized

I presented this at SEAM Spatial Phrases conference in Sydney,

by the awards I received: a DINZ Best gold award (jointly),

showed at a exhibition in Perth and directed a performance titled

the Zonta Design award, the Artichoke Award and I was named

‘Big Weather’ at Te Papa.

MDes 2010

a Massey University Scholar.

performative installation art - together. I also worked freelance for artists and musicians in both London and Berlin, before returning downunder to work as a digital designer at IE Agency in Melbourne.

I am now working at Isobar Australia, as an Art Director and Interactive Designer.

Polyrhythmic Landscapes: Body Dress City.

MATT MCKINLEY BDes (Hons) 2008 Industrial Design MDes (Distinction) 2009 Gold Award (student) DINZ Best Awards 2008 Finalist, Dyson Product Award 2008 My undergrad degree majoring in industrial design had met with some success so I decided to make the leap into postgraduate study.

Pursuing a Masters degree was a big decision for me as the prospect of being poor and sleepless for a further year was not inspiring!

I was persuaded by the prospect of a dual sponsorship deal with the University’s Affect Research Centre and Gallagher Group, the Hamilton based technology company, which allowed me to achieve the higher qualification while also gaining some valuable industry experience.

Masters study, like the Bachelor degree, was a damn tough time but it turned out to be one of the better decisions I’ve ever made.

1

I graduated with Distinction, and subsequently secured employment with Gallagher as the company’s sole in-house Industrial Designer where I have had the opportunity to develop my Masters project further, and even get my name listed on a couple of international patents!

I’ve been employed at Gallagher for four years now and during that time I’ve been lucky enough to perform field research with a variety of end users throughout the world, develop a wide range of innovative and exciting new products, and see the products I’ve helped to create enhance people’s lives out in the real world.

2

1.

Gallagher Multi-Strand Gate

2.

Matt receiving Gold at the Best Awards 2008

NADINE JAGGI BDes (Hons) 2004 Fashion Design Nadine started her working career sourcing and designing textiles at the Capital Theatre in Switzerland before returning to New Zealand and finding her niche in costume design at Weta Workshop. Over the next six years she worked on projects that included District 9, Avatar and Prince Caspian and many more.

While she has now set up her own business crafting one-off leather headdresses, costumes and accessories, she also continues to contract for the film industry.

Nadine won the Supreme Award at the World of Wearable Arts show in 2008.

Leather work by Nadine Jaggi Photographer- Simon Godsiff.

MORGAN TERRY BDes (Hons) 2008 Spatial Design Winner, Zonta Award (Spatial) 2007 Winner, Artichoke Interior Design Award 2007 Second prize, Australasian Student Design Awards (Exhibition Design) 2008 Morgan has been working with AllistarCox Architects for the past three years, and has decided it is time to venture off shore to explore the world in 2014. Her numerous projects with AllistarCox have included hospitality (cafe, bar/restaurant, brewery) retail, pharmacy design and urban planning.

Local examples include Matterhorn, Mojo, and Bartley + Company Art, as well as projects in Melbourne, Dubai and Tokyo.

She says it has been great working for a company that privileges the design process, materiality and detailing to such a high level, and has enjoyed implementing many of the strategies and design thinking processes she was introduced to while studying at Massey.

Body_ Detail_ Space explores the relationship between jewellery, the body and architecture: sensitively designed spaces frame the body with exquisitely crafted architectural detail.

SARAH WATSON BDes (Hons) 2010 Textile Design In my final year at high school in Invercargill, I made the trip to Wellington for Massey’s Open Day. I had heard all about Massey’s good reputation but being on campus convinced me that this was where I wanted to pursue my passion for the creative arts.

While in my first year I was introduced to the world of textile design and spent the following three years in the most exciting department on campus.

I found my greatest inspiration from my classmates (who became great friends) within textiles and in other departments; we spent many late nights together in the studio. With excellent tutors and exciting resources as well as opportunities to showcase our work, there was never a dull moment.

At the end of my final year, I was lucky enough to be given an internship at esdesign, a local interior design company. I spent my first year as a graduate employed by them, applying skills and knowledge I had gained at Massey, and learning a whole new set of skills within the interior design industry. I then trained to become a secondary teacher, and for a time I was both teaching and working at esdesign – the best of both worlds – before finding a full time teaching position. I always knew I would eventually become a teacher but studying design was my first priority.

Sarah at esdesign retail store.

JAMAINE RANIERA FRASER Te Arawa BDes (Hons) 2009 Industrial Design Runner-up James Dyson Award 2009 Bronze Award (student), DINZ Best Awards 2009 Winner, Sustainable Bio-economy Student Poster Conference 2010 Jamaine worked as a technician at Massey and then at Scion Crown Research Institute, providing advice on design, model-making, concept sketching and the development of furniture from bio-composite plastics.

He has been self-employed as a Design Consultant since 2010.

OLIVIA TAYLOR BFA (Hons) 2011 Photography MFA (Distinction) 2011 Winner, Peter Turner Memorial Scholarship 2009 Massey Scholar In a special collaboration between Massey and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Olivia joined the musicians as their documentary photographer during their three-week tour of Europe in 2010. This resulted in her exhibition ‘In Golden Halls: on tour with the NZSO’ held in 2011. Olivia described it as an ‘amazing experience’ which has inspired her career in commercial and wedding photography, which she has been growing in Auckland for the past two years. In 2014 Olivia is travelling to London with her partner (a former member of the NZSO!) where she plans to continue to develop her career in photography.

STEVE BUTLER BDes (Hons) 2008 Digital Media Gold, DINZ Best Award 2008 Founder / Creative Director and Designer at Eminde, a collective of creatives in Hawke’s Bay. Steve works with music and design to create digital albums, motion graphics, illustrations, mobile apps, videos and more.

‘Digital Album Cover Design Prototype’ ‘A new approach for the music industry, allowing the artist to present their album covers more personally.’

ANNABEL GOSLIN BDes (Hons) 2010 Industrial Design Industrial Designer, Unlimited Realities, Wellington Contract worker for OBO Hockey Equipment Manufacturer My first job after graduating was with industrial design company Unlimited Realities in Palmerston North, where I developed applications for consumer software. I also worked as a contractor for New Zealand field hockey equipment manufacturer OBO, developing their new range of field hockey goalie gear.

Hockey is a great passion of mine and this often inspired my design projects at Massey. In my third year I designed Armadillo, an all-purpose sports rain jacket; and my final project was a protective hockey mask called The Guardian which was inspired by my personal experience of being injured as a hockey player. Both of these designs won international RedDot Awards for innovation and excellence in design concept. More than 12,000 people from 60 different countries enter this competition so it was a real thrill, and confirmation of the level of design skills being taught at Massey University.

This award gave me a distinct advantage when applying for my first job and the contacts I made with international businesses at the award ceremony in Singapore will be very useful in the future.

Unlimited Realities is a company best known for its innovative multi-touch software and is a great place to expand my skills in product development and commercialisation.

Annabel with products designed for OBO.

Philip Merry

JESSICA SANDERSON Ngati Kahungunu, Te Atiawa and Te Ati-Haunui-a-Paparangi BDes (Hons) 2010 Performance Design Aotea Star Scholarship 2009, which funded an internship with artist /filmmaker Luis Gisbert in New York.

Awarded funding from Toi Whakaari: New Zealand Drama School for the production of her collaborative short film Quarters.

Photographer of the stills from Jessica’s short film Our House

Winner of NZ on Air Best Music Video by a Maori Artist at the 2012 Maori Music awards, for her music video of Ria Hall’s track ‘Best of Me’ Jessica is currently producing promotional videos for TVNZ, across all their channels, and maintains her arts practice through collaborations with musicians, writers and theatre makers.

She also illustrates, designs sets, posters and costumes for events and theatre productions.

JOHN O’REILLY BDes 2000 Graphic Design Creative Director, Flightless Creative Studios John, alongside fellow Massey computer engineering grad Greg Harding, runs a business that designs and makes games and apps.

Their most recent iPad and iPhone game Bee Leader has taken the world by storm after Apple named it one of the best games of 2012 and nominated it as their global app of the week.

As a result Bee Leader, which challenges players to collect nectar to make honey while battling bad weather and hostile insects, is now the No 1 free game in more than 15 countries and is ranked sixth most popular free game for iPhone.

Flightless is based in Mt Maunganui, and this small but savvy company has also designed apps for helping children with spelling, making a cocktail selection and – quintessentially kiwi – an animal herding game called Top Dog.

BRONWYN HOLLOWAY–SMITH BFA (Hons) 2006 Fine Art Since graduating from Massey University in 2006 I have steadily established myself as a successful contemporary artist. My work has been shown at significant public and artist-run galleries and is represented in several major public and private art collections including the Wallace, the Wellington City Council, and the Massey University Collection.

I contribute to the New Zealand arts community through my roles as Trustee for Enjoy Public Art Gallery and as Director of the Creative Freedom Foundation. This copyright advocacy group gained significant international attention in 2009 when I fronted the “internet blackout” online public protest, and as a result was listed by the National Business Review as one of the 25 Most Powerful People in Technology!

My recent work has included the Wellington City Council’s Ghuznee St Art Billboard series; working with the public art commissions group Letting Space, to realise a major installation in Wellington; and inclusion in The Obstinate Object, a major survey of contemporary NZ sculpture at City Gallery Wellington. I have won New Zealand Open Source Arts Award two years running, and recently worked with AUT’s CoLab research centre to produce a video for Air New Zealand’s Inflight Entertainment programme. Right now I’m studying a copyright course at Harvard through the online education network EdX. Studying at Massey exposed me to some incredible artworks, ideas and people that are of continued importance in my practice. It also taught me to be self directed – a huge asset when you are driving your own projects.

After Rohan Wealleans’ “He Of 109 Names And One Tusk”, Bronwyn Holloway-Smith, 2012. Image courtesy of the artist.

JOANNE DUFF BDes (Hons) 2006 Illustration Freelance graphic designer, Vancouver Jo worked on print, illustration and web projects at Foundry Creative in Wellington for just over three years before moving to StoryInc, where she worked as the senior graphic designer on a number of museum and exhibition design projects. These included Ka Mate, a temporary exhibition and interactive experience at Te Papa during the 2011 Rugby World Cup, and a permanent exhibition for the Te Arawa tribe at Rotorua Museum. Jo is now based in Vancouver, Canada where she is freelancing as an art director and graphic designer for a variety of clients and creative agencies. cargocollective.com/joanneduffdesign

JOHN LAKE MFA 2009 John is a freelance photographer working in documentary, conceptual arts and commercial fields, with a number of public exhibitions to his name. ‘Death poses for a photo while stalking the tree-lined dreamscape of suburbia.’

NICK ROSS BDes (Hons) 2008 Industrial Design MDes, 2012 Umea Institute, Sweden In my third year I took advantage of Massey’s Study Abroad programme and spent six months in San José, California. This really inspired me – kind of lit up the potential of industrial design for me. I was then lucky to receive a scholarship to study my Masters at the renowned Umea Institute of Design in Sweden.

During my time there I completed internships with Atlas Copco (Sweden), Designit (Denmark) and Lunar (San Francisco), before working with forestry companies based in Sweden for my degree project.

In 2012 I won the New Zealand James Dyson Award, a product design competition. This netted me an all expenses paid trip to the UK to meet with key contacts in the design community, as well as legal and IP advice from NZ firms which will help commercialise my design. My winning entry was a tree-harvesting device called Axolotyl, which I designed to cut trees right from ground level, and feed them straight into the machine.

An extraction process returns the needles back to the soil as nutrients, while the branches gathered in a separate container can be re-used as an alternative energy fuel. I enjoyed the challenges involved in ensuring this design followed the principles of sustainability, as well as engaging with the international forestry industry.

I met a few Massey grads at Umea – the School of Design has established a great reputation in Sweden and beyond, so we really are making a difference in the global design market.

Nick Ross with his award winning ‘Axolotyl’ design.

ADRIENNE PITTS BDes (Hons) 2000 Photography Adrienne is an award-winning art director, designer and photographer based in London.

She has worked as both a graphic designer and photographer in a number of roles around the world, including photographing and styling for celebratory chef Jamie Oliver.

In June 2012 she was named Designer of the Year in the prestigious PPA Awards.

MATT WHITWELL Nga-i Tahu BFA (Hons) 2011 Fine Arts Matt is a Wellington based artist working in the fields of sound and spatial composition, performance, object making and self-publishing. He was artist in residence for Enjoy Public Art Gallery in 2012 and has participated in numerous exhibitions and performances in New Zealand and overseas.

Project Echo - a radio station acting as a parody of a secret government communication system.

WENDY KWAN BDes (Hons) 2009 Fashion Design Winner, John Rainger Vilene Award 2008 Wendy is working for Rembrandt Suits Ltd in Wellington as Personal Tailoring Co-ordinator, a role which includes managing good relationships with suppliers, manufacturers, retailers, customers and many others.

‘In the aesthetic historical timeline from Mao’s communist era through to today, Chinese women’s identities have changed, but the remnants of the past and their original roots are still there.’

ANTON GARLAND BDes (Hons) 2009 Transport Design Studying for Masters Degree at Umea Institute, Sweden Icona Design and Engineering, Shanghai I loved Gran Turismo 2 and got into the whole Japanese imports scene when I was at school studying graphic design while dreaming of becoming an architect. I always saw buildings as the largest form of artwork, but in their own way cars are bigger. They’re more intricate, more personal.

It was during this mammoth gaming session one weekend that I realised I could combine my passion for all things automotive with my love of architecture.

I decided to head to Massey. Soon I was designing an amphibious car and a fold-up commuter vehicle. With encouragement from my tutors I applied to study for my Masters at the Umea Institute of Automotive Design in Sweden, one of the top car design schools in the world.

A $30K AMP Scholarship helped make this a reality: then part way through my studies I was offered an intern position with Icona, an Italian design house based in Shanghai, and this subsequently became a contract. So I have been on the team, led by Samuel Chuffart, which is developing the supercar Icona Vulcano, launched in April 2013. Our design brief was to express the amazing capabilities of this extremely powerful car, while still maintaining harmonious and generous shapes.

I reckon we nailed it!

I will finish my studies at Umea but right now the projects are so exciting and the experience so valuable that I am focusing on my time at Icona. Plus Shanghai life is pretty amazing!

JULIAN LEGGE BDes (Hons) 2008 Digital Media Gold, DINZ Best Award, 2008 Julian works at Weta Digital in both pre-vis and animation departments, and has worked on a slew of films including Tintin, Lovely Bones, District 9, The Avengers, Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, Man of Steel, Ironman 3,The Wolverine, and The Hobbit. ‘Clean and Green’ A personal and social comment on the devastating effect that pollution, like storm water drainage, has on our marine eco systems.

DANA FINNIGAN BDes (Hons) 2006, Textile Design MDes Glasgow School of Art 2008 I was first exposed to the wonderful world of textile design while on a youth exchange to Belgium. I was living in Antwerp and worked at a vintage clothing stop in the fashion district surrounded by the likes of Dries van Noten and Walter Van Beirendonck: it was their work that introduced me to the concept of textile design.

I went back to New Zealand inspired by what I had seen in Belgium and began my bachelor degree in textile design at Massey University in 2002. It was one of the best decisions I ever made – my Massey degree is leagues ahead of others I have seen and gave me a great, solid backing to start my career.

In 2007 I was awarded a British Council Scholarship to complete my ‘Textiles as Fashion’ Masters degree at the Glasgow School of Art. After graduating in 2008 I began working for the prestigious design studio ‘Timorous Beasties’, a design-led manufacturing company specialising in fabrics and wallpapers.

Having the honour of working Timorous Beasties has been tremendous and such a wonderful experience. I loved being part of such an inspirational design team and all of the thrills, including highs and lows, pulling out hit after hit in the interior textile world, has been second to none.

After working at the studio for the past five years, I felt that it was the right time to set up a studio of my own. My focus product is printed bathroom suites. I also offer a range of wallpapers, cushions and other ceramic items. I really want to offer my customers a ‘total art’ interior not just a product. I understand this may not be an experience for everyone but I’d like to think it fills a space that isn’t entirely covered in the current interior textiles market.

My products are aimed at clients who have an individual taste and require a product a little left of the norm. I really love that ‘matchy-matchy’ interior textile design look that has was in favour some 30 years ago. I believe that a ‘Matchy-Matchy’ bathroom suite, with matching wallpaper and accessories, is right at the top of somebodies must-have list.

MATT RODGERS BDes (Hons) 2005 Digital Media Freelance concept artist, Canada

Matt has continued his education with CGWorkshops.

Under Blizzard’s David Luong he emerged top of the class in Photo Real Matte Painting. Matt currently

Matt has been a freelance concept artist and illustrator

resides in Vancouver, where he remains involved with

since graduating. He has worked with clients including

the film industry as a freelance concept artist.

Disney World Entertainment, Marvel Entertainment, Gibson Group, Clicksuite, Zippitoons, and Learning Media.

He also spent four years designing environments, props and costumes at Weta Workshop, working on projects like The Hobbit and The Adventures of Tin Tin, amongst others.

RANGA TUHI Waikato and Ngati Maniapoto BDes (Hons) 2009 Graphic Design Ranga has been self-employed as a freelance graphic designer and artist since 2011. He is also an author and whakairo (carver).

Te Pou - tuarongo

AMY BUTLER BDEs (Hons) 2008 Textile Design Winner, Levana Textile Design Award 2008 I’ve been working at Levana as the designer for three years, and have been the sole designer for nearly two. I got my foot in the door after doing an internship there arranged as part of my studies at Massey. Levana produces knitted fabrics, and I work on the design and development of all new fabrics, with particular emphasis on designing jacquards for numerous customers. Levana is a world leader in developing new innovative fabrics, and it’s amazing to be part of it. I’ve come into the company at a time of growth in international markets, so I’ve been lucky enough to work with numerous customers across Australia and New Zealand, as well as some of the high-end fashion powerhouses in Europe. Who would have thought all this happens from little Levin!

KELLY RIMKEIT OLATUNJI BDes (Hons) 2011, Textile Design MDes 2014 My design journey so far has been one of adaptability, collaboration and innovation.

My postgraduate study showed me how design can make a key contribution to research and development in the textiles field. After my bachelor degree I had spent a couple of years working full-time in the film and furniture industries, before returning to Massey University in 2013 to study towards a Master of Design as a Callaghan Innovation Fellow.

The collaboration with industry partner, FibreTech NZ Ltd., meant that throughout my studies I had access to industry mentoring and emerging technology, and was able to contribute to an ongoing research and development project. In combination with the rich academic support through the College of Creative Art’s postgraduate school I feel confident that my design-led project, Capturing Loft, produced innovative and viable new directions that will benefit New Zealand wool bedding products. The professional skills I learned by working regularly with those from different disciplines such as business, science and engineering will be central to how I grow my career from here.

My best moment was the potluck dinner with MDes, MFA students and our supervisors, where everyone talked about the different and colourful dishes they had brought with them. The evening had such a good feeling of sharing and community.

I learned the most from working with industry: different pace, different emphasis – the knowledge gained has been very important to how I view my role as a designer. You have to be able to work together towards a mutual goal.

What I enjoyed the most was Level E, Te Ara Hihiko, the post-grad studio space was a humming, light-filled creative zone. Healthy discussion about art and design (sometimes art vs. design) and gaining that important second opinion was always a possibility. I especially enjoyed having access to the large felt walls – mood boards were an important way for me to get out my ideas, so it was fantastic having access to this space 24/7.

Capturing Loft: Adding value to New Zealand wool bedding products through textile design innovation. This project was run in collaboration with FibreTech New Zealand Ltd., a New Zealand manufacturing firm based in Christchurch, with funding from Callaghan Innovation.

SHANE MCGRATH BFA (Hons) 2009 Fine Art MFA 2010 After completing his Masters degree Shane was the inaugural Deblyn artist in residence at Toi Poneke Arts Centre in Wellington. Subsequently he exhibited as part of Headland:Sculpture on the Gulf on Waiheke Island and at Bondi, Sculpture by the Sea in Sydney. In 2011 the City Gallery Wellington commissioned a permanent public sculpture as part of the Obstinate Object series: titled Everything is for the best, in this best of all possible worlds, the sculpture is now located in Glover Park.

In 2013 he exhibited as part of the Blue Oyster Project in Dunedin. Shane is based in Melbourne and is represented by Bartley and Company, Wellington. ‘Regressive Action No. 1’

PHOEBE SMITH BDes (Hons) 2009 Advertising Design At Massey I learned to think sideways, and squeeze out more ideas and creative energy than I thought possible. In my third year I was supported by a Pacific Islands Scholarship and encouraged by being a joint winner (with fellow student Nicole Yeoman) of the NZ Post Student Marketer of the Year Award. In my final year the Zonta VCD Award gave me an internship with Saatchi & Saatchi, which soon became a full time job as an art director. It was full on but truly amazing to work with such great people on a huge range of exciting projects.

In 2010 I moved to Los Angeles where I was delighted to be able to combine my two creative loves by freelancing as a graphic designer for hip-hop choreographers. The whole year was full of new adventures – the biggest challenge was making sure I had the capacity to absorb and appreciate every moment!

In 2012 I travelled to California for a design internship with Invisible Children, the non-profit organization behind the infamous Kony 2012 video – the biggest viral campaign in the history of the internet. It gave me some great insights to be there in the immediate wake of the unexpected publicity this campaign received.

I’m now back in New Zealand working as a tutor at the School of Design amongst other things.

I’m looking forward to whatever the future has in store - new adventures, passionate people, and overflowing creativity.

KIRIANA PETTERSEN BDes (Hons) 2008 Fashion Design Design Manager, Glassons Hallensteins Holdings, Wellington I was 28 and had been living in London and working for UK megabrand Topshop for 5 years when Glasson / Hallensteins CEO Graeme Popplewell came knocking at my door with an offer I could not refuse.

I began at Topshop as an intern in the design department and worked my way up to becoming head designer for the largest department. I worked under Kate Phelan, from UK Vogue, and regularly with top stylist Katie Grand and celebrities such as M.I.A and Kate Bosworth. I was part of the team responsible for the overall look of the multiple collections at Topshop.

This gave me some great experience in shaping brand designs, and this was just what Glassons in New Zealand was looking for.

Happily I was also keen to come home, and I began as Glassons new Design Manager in late 2013.

As well as acting as the in house creative consultant and trend forecaster, I design the new boutique-style premium line called Edt, featuring limited edition items in high quality fabrics and finishes that are still affordable.

My aim is ensure there is a clear vision for the brand, and that we are on trend with the rest of the world.

Beyonce in one of my Topshop designs.