This summer a-n members will once again be taking over the a-n Instagram to post images and commentary from degree shows around the country as they happen.
Following an open call on Jobs and opps, we’ve selected five artist-Instagrammers who will be visiting shows in Scotland, north west England, the Midlands, Wales and London.
Our degree shows Instagram takeovers kick-off this week with Dundee-based artist FK McLoone posting from her own show at Duncan Of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, and Cardiff-based Anna Grace Rogers visiting fine art, textiles and ceramics degree shows at Swansea College of Art.
Speaking about her plans for the takeovers McLoone, who will also be visiting shows at Glasgow School of Art and Edinburgh College of Art and Design, said: “As part of the @djcad_uod degree show, I’m already excited to celebrate what my peers produce, and to examine how they connect to the wider picture among Scottish art schools.
“I’ll be seeing the work in Dundee, Glasgow and Edinburgh, phone and notepad in hand of course…”
Later this week, Anna Grace Rogers will be posting from Cardiff School of Art and Design before turning her attention to the show at University of South Wales later in the degree show season.
Explaining what interests her about the work being made by art graduates in south Wales, she said: “What I find so exciting is the multidisciplinary nature of their practices, how emerging arts practitioners here manage not to compromise on a historical, technical and cultural understanding of traditional processes and to make such inspiring work.”
St Helens-based student Rebecca Ainsworth, who will be posting from University Centre St Helens, Wirral Met College and Bolton University, says she’s keen to support and promote alternatives to studying for a degree in visual art at traditional universities.
“There’s some great art to show at university centres and colleges,” she said. “And having a platform to share this work will be a great opportunity for fellow students and graduates.”
Janet Tryner’s first takeover will come from the fine art, illustration and graphic design shows at Coventry University. Leamington Spa-based artist Tryner will also be posting from Birmingham City University and Warwickshire College.
“I’m really looking forward to covering end-of-year shows in the West Midlands. There is so much amazing work happening in this region that justifies wider attention,” she said.
“It’s the first-ever fine art degree show at Warwickshire College this year. In a further education college, it’s easy to feel very small in comparison to more established art courses and institutions. Taking over a-n’s Instagram to document the show will really boost the confidence of the final-year Fine Art and Contemporary Cultures BA students.”
Later in the degree show season, London-based student Sam King will be posting from Camberwell College of Art fine art show as well as those at City & Guilds of London Art School and The Art Academy, where he is currently studying.
“I’d like to share the work of my peers and contemporaries whom I have seen working so consistently over this year towards their degree shows. I am constantly impressed by their developments both technically and conceptually,” he explained.
“I really value the close-knit nature of the smaller schools that I feel can allow for a better level of curation in a degree show. In the end it is not where you study and the qualification you get so much as what you do and how you do and contextualise it.”
Follow a-n on Instagram to see all the takeovers as they happen and follow the conversation on social media using the hashtag #andegrees18.
More degree shows news and views, plus an interactive map and expanded listings to help find shows near you at www.a-n.co.uk/degree-shows
Images:
1. FK McLoone, Proposal, zine.
2. Anna Rogers, studio practice, 2018.
3. Rebecca Ainsworth, work produced in response to a recent residency at Gedok Stuttgart – part of Project Zei.
4. Janet Tryner, Daily Bread (detail), approx 3mx2.5m, polyethylene bread bags, nails, acrylic paint, gesso and pen.
5. Sam King, Descension (1 part of a triptych), oil on linen, 2018.
a-n Degree Shows Guide 2018
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Luke Willis Thompson wins 2018 Deutsche Börse Photography Prize
Ambitious new Elephant in the room as Griffin Gallery closes
