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Master of Creative Practice student wins national art award with “Pink Bats” piece Melissa McMahon’s winning work, made from earthenware, terra sigillata, glaze, gold lustre, and wool blend fibre, was chosen by judge Robert Jahnke, who praised Melissa’s use of memento mori—reminders of death. Melissa, from Maungaturoto in Northland, completed a certificate and then a bachelor’s degree at Unitec before embarking on her Master of Creative Practice.
“Where the master’s programme really shines is the Art and Design staff and their commitment to supporting students.”
“Pink Bats was the result of three and a half years of research for my master’s at Unitec, so it was great to have that work recognised.”
Richard Fahey, a Unitec lecturer who supervised McMahon on her master’s programme, said the time, space and resources that the master’s programme extends to students enables projects that are ambitious and demanding.
McMahon’s work topped nearly 300 entries nationwide to receive the Molly Morpeth Canaday Award—Three Dimensional Artform. The award celebrates excellence in fine art throughout Aotearoa.
“I’m delighted with the news of Melissa’s award,” he said. “She took the opportunity to challenge herself, conceiving and constructing work at a far more ambitious scale than she had done previously.”
“This work really made an amazing impression on me—there’s something compelling about ceramic urns beyond their funerary function and that is their earth-bound materiality and inherent fragility,” said Jahnke.
“I have a whole series of work in development,” says McMahon. “And I’m also in the process of setting up a new studio, so it’s a very exciting time.”
McMahon paid tribute to her Unitec course tutors, saying their input and support had been essential to the creation of her work. “The staff are amazing, and my supervisors were very supportive,” she said. “As it’s a practice-focused programme, you can really concentrate on studio research, and you have the freedom to pursue a vast array of creative outcomes.”
Read more inspirational stories at unitec.ac.nz/latest-news
