Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Previous Archive
07 December 2023 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo CHARL DEVENISH
Dr Marié Herbst
Dr Marié Herbst received her PhD with specialisation in Design, titled The (S)Pace of Images: establishing a practice of the conscious abstraction of motion. She hopes that the techniques and processes explored in her research will spark creativity in the way other designers approach their work.

“My research has unveiled the exquisite patterns generated by motion in nature and everyday objects – patterns that often evade our awareness as we encounter motion in a fleeting moment. Abstraction plays a pivotal role in unveiling these exquisite yet largely unnoticed patterns that surround us.”

This is the perspective of Dr Marié Herbst, who graduated at the University of the Free State (UFS) in December, receiving her PhD with specialisation in Design, titled The (S)Pace of Images: establishing a practice of the conscious abstraction of motion.

Abstraction, a key component of building design

Dr Herbst says that the abstract art movement has had a profound influence on how designers think about design. “Highly regarded architects such as Le Corbusier and Zaha Hadid identify their practice of creating abstract paintings as the driving force behind their ground-breaking building designs. Abstraction is therefore a key component of building design, although the process of how it is applied has historically not received adequate attention. My research explores the way abstraction enables designers to include design information that is only possible through the process of abstraction. One such aspect is motion. Through the process of tracing and superimposing still images extracted from films, I can integrate them into a single picture that shows the progression of time,” she explains.

She hopes that the techniques and processes explored in her research will ignite creativity in how other designers approach their work. “The concepts and techniques outlined in my research are intended to prompt other designers to reconsider the procedures they employ when crafting spaces,” she states.

In the future, Dr Herbst says, she would like to further explore the ideas sparked by her research, such as determining how design would be affected by recording movement in a three-dimensional environment. “New technologies such as LiDAR make the recording of three-dimensional information much simpler, and it will increasingly become a part of our everyday lives. This is a potentially useful information stream that could be applied to create novel designs,” she says.

‘Practice-based’ versus ‘design-led’ research

Prof Jonathan Noble, Head of the Department of Architecture, says this is the very first PhD from the new creative research programme in architecture that was launched in 2018, where the student has completed a ‘design-led’ enquiry. 

He explains that the new creative programme differentiates between ‘practice-based’ research, closely tied to real-world architecture, where candidates analyse and study their previous work, and ‘design-led’ research, which is led by an entirely new creative exploration that encourage speculation and experimentation. According to him, the latter leads to a creative enquiry, and this body of new work is analysed and written about.

Following Prof Noble, postgraduate research in architecture in South Africa has traditionally centred around architectural theory, cultural history, urban studies, and conservation. Creative research methods, however, have not been as prominent. The Department of Architecture is addressing this by introducing new postgraduate research modes supported by innovative research degrees, marking a departure from the traditional approach in South Africa.

“We believe the programme will have a lasting and significant effect upon our professional degrees, injecting professional creativity and new thinking into the life of the department, and serving as an opportunity to look deeply into design and pedagogic practices. Over time, the programme will strengthen ties with the profession and address the closed mentalities of the so-called ‘academic ivory tower’.”

“In addition to providing emerging young scholars with opportunities, the programme facilitates the documentation of the unique qualities of South African practice and makes an important contribution to future research publication and teaching pedagogy at the UFS and beyond,” he says.

News Archive

From music to theology: Stats Unit valuable in research process
2017-02-23

Description: Prof Robert Schall Tags: Prof Robert Schall

Prof Schall, head of the UFS Statistical Consultation Unit
Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

Whether it is analysing data on church attendance, climate change in the Northern Cape or injuries among elite female hockey players, the Statistical Consultation Unit at the University of the Free State (UFS) can assist researchers from the planning of research to publication therof.

Many students and researchers think that the time to consult a statistician is after their research data has been collected. According to Prof Robert Schall, head of the unit, the most significant contribution a statistician can make to a research project is often during its planning. Preferably all researchers should consult the unit early in the research process.

Statistical consultation service free for postgraduates

The consultation unit, established in 2014 in the Department of Mathematical Statistics and Actuarial Science, provides support to all UFS researchers. This service is rendered to postgraduate students at no charge.

“The unit can make a contribution throughout the research process, from the planning of the research project, through the analysis of research data, up to the publication of the findings. I have been involved in projects where, for example, a few very simple changes to the design of a questionnaire would have saved the researcher and the statistician a lot of trouble. It will be beneficial for researchers to have their questionnaires and study proposals (where relevant), reviewed by a statistician,” Prof Schall said.

“The unit can make a contribution
throughout the research process,
from the planning of the research
project, through the analysis of
research data, up to the publication
of the findings.”

Fascinating research topics deliver fascinating data
The professor assisted in a study for the Department of Soil, Crop and Climate Sciences to determine whether rainfall in the Northern Cape had changed over the past 90 years, potentially indicating climate change.

Other interesting projects he has worked on came from the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences. “Who will not be fascinated by data sets on aspects of rugby, cricket or even netball? One significant finding was a predictor of injury in elite female hockey players. The PhD student identified a pre-season test which predicted the occurrence of an in-season injury with 100% specificity and 100% sensitivity. The finding was quite surprising, and, if the results can be replicated, obviously would be useful in the prevention of injuries,” he said.

This is, of course, not an exhaustive list of projects the unit has worked on. “Not in my wildest dreams would I have expected to be involved in projects coming from the Faculty of Theology, or from the Odeion School of Music,” Prof Schall said.

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept