Archive >> August 2002

Deconstructing faculty

Respected Dean of Columbia School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Bernard Tschumi’s tenure reviewed on notice of his retirement. His transformative guidance made the faculty a model of architectural…

LOTR

The Fellowship of the Ring won the Hugo Award for best dramatic presentation at the World Science Fiction Convention in San Jose, California. In attendance for the ceremony were Sean Astin…

Edge People of Middle Earth

“, for all its knockout grandeur, is but the trailer, the preview of the country. NZ doesn’t need to be digitally enhanced. It has an orchestra replete with special effects all…

Bic is back

“She sings the kind of beautiful, haunting songs that work their way into your subconscious and emerge when it’s raining and you can’t sleep.” Bic Runga’s new album Beautiful…

A Believer in the Green Light

“Without a doubt one of the most brilliant journalists and columnists of his generation.” Neal Travis, the “brash, swashbuckling New Zealand import”, legendary editor of The New York Post’s in/famous Page Six…

“It’s All About That Fern”

The Cinderalla New Zealand Tall Black’s sensational hoop dreams soared as they hustled and impressed their way into the semi finals of World Championships (Indianapolis). Sports Illustrated calls…

On the Straight and Narrow Isles

A survey of 102 countries by German-based Transparency International found NZ to be one of the least corrupt states. The annual report claims “to reflect perceived levels of corruption among politicians…

Dick Hubbard: “Messiah of Muesli”

Kiwi entrepreneur, Dick Hubbard, profiled in Independent. “A highly unconventional capitalist,” Cereal evangelist Hubbard is NZ’s chief advocate of social responsibility in business, joining international brands such as Benetton and The Body…

Sporting success: air guitar and Scrabble

Hastings meatworker Toby Peneha took out second place at the 7th annual World Air Guitar Championship in Oulu, Finland. Narrowly beaten by two-time British winner Zac Munro, Toby “the…

Karen Walker: Back Yard High Casual

6 page Observer spread: Walker uses her distance to advantage, preferring the hilltops of Auckland to the glamour and pace of Europe. “Karen Walker’s lived-in fabrics and homely knits…

Bamboo Dick: First Flyer

“What’s all the fuss about the Wright Bros? All good Kiwis know New Zealand’s Richard Pearse got there first.” With the centenary of his flight looming, Debbi Gardiner, writes in Salon…

Children subject of Her Majesty

The Edinburgh International Film Festival screens the “quirky New Zealand film” Her Majesty. Mark J Gordon’s feature (from a Sundance award-winning script) tells the story of an…

A toast to Elvis

Not content with gracing the billboards of Wellington, NZ toast artist Maurice Bennet is going global. Bennet’s Elvis tribute was noted in Ananova’s quest for the world’s…

Guilt-free Fur

Ah, to be able to wear fur without fear of red paint. The possum’s status as NZ’s chief environmental menace has encouraged the fashion industry to use its fur…

“Land of the Long White Run”

NZ slopes get the thumbs up from Oz ski-buffs. The Southern Alps: “bigger than the Swiss, French and Austrian Alps combined” – are praised for their variety, beauty, and value for the…

Uncle Sam’s Head?

The sale of Te Kuri/Young Nick’s Head to an American financier has not escaped international notice. Symbolic for both Maori and European firsts (reputed to be the first land seen by…

Ashes to Ashes

The heart-stopping (breaking?) Bledisloe battles are becoming enshrined in Ocker sporting lore: “Once, Australians could rattle off virtually every ball of an Ashes cricket series. Now it is Bledisloe Cup rugby.” According…

Steady Hand

A thematic juggling act handled with skill: C.K Stead’s The Secret History of Modernism intersperses a tale of young love with one family’s experience of the Holocaust. Washington Post…

Moore Free Trade?

Mike Moore, outgoing NZ director-general of the World Trade Organisation, makes an impassioned plea for wealthy nations to review their agricultural trade policies, arguing that subsidies are no help to poorer…

The blink and you’ll miss him sex symbol

“Lord of the extras: Elfin charmer nets fans.” A pout like that and musical and comedic talent! Wellington musician Bret McKenzie (The Black Seeds, Flight of the Conchords)…

Sculling Sisters

NZ twins Georgina and Caroline Evers-Swindell continue to impress on the international rowing circuit. The pair won gold at July’s World Cup in Munich and are tipped to do the…

Sevens Heaven

Kiwi dominance impresses at Manchester where they prove themselves masters of the form: “New Zealand dominate seven-a-side rugby the way that Lance Armstrong lords it over cycling, Tiger Woods bestrides…

Hi-fi Goes Hi-tech

More Hyperfactory innovation. Popular NZ dance music radio station – GeorgeFM – has introduced a streaming SMS system to interact with their audience. Listeners can now text their requests, queries,…

Tri-Nations Champions

The All Blacks positioned themselves to take the Tri-nations title for the first time since 1999 with a gripping and eventful tussle with the Springboks (including a spectator who took the…

Nature vs. Nurture

The argument over whether environment or genetics plays the bigger part in creating violent dispositions is moving towards a tentative reconciliation. London-based research has proposed that the level of a particular…

Idyll

Vogue Living (Australia) visits the gardens of the exlusive Huka Lodge, designed by Suzanne Turley. “With brilliant green lawns punctuated by conifers, native trees and sub-tropical plants, the serene garden of…