This week sees a bumper batch of degree shows opening as we head into the busiest period for final-year exhibitions.
So, good luck to all the students involved, including painters Jessie Davies and Aidan Stephen, both of which are profiled in our Class of 2019 feature in this year’s a-n Degree Shows Guide.
Stephen, who is graduating from Edinburgh School of Art (ECA), says: “ECA has been an immersive and overwhelming experience and it has changed my life, for good.”
The week’s openings, selected from our online listings guide, are:
University of Lincoln, College of Arts
Under the banner ‘Lincoln Festival of Creativity’, final-year students from a wide range of disciplines showcase their work at the culmination of their courses, which include: Design for Exhibitions & Museums, Interactive Design, Creative Advertising, Illustration, Fine Art, and Fashion. University of Lincoln graduate Elizabeth Gray is one of four emerging artists we spoke to for our Next Steps feature, which profiles schemes that support recent graduates by providing free and subsidised studio space, professional development opportunities and bursaries.
Until 7 June 2019, University of Lincoln, College of Arts, Brayford Way, Brayford Pool, Lincoln, LN6 7TS.
www.lincolnfestivalofcreativity.co.uk/
www.twitter.com/FestCreativity
www.instagram.com/festivalofcreativity/
Cardiff Metropolitan University, Cardiff School of Art and Design
Cardiff School of Art and Design Summer Show 2019 showcases work by students graduating from creative courses including Animation, Architectural Design & Technology, Ceramics, Fine Art, Graphic Communication, Illustration, Interior Design, Product Design, and Textiles.
29 May – 4 June 2019, Llandaff Campus, Western Avenue, Cardiff, CF5 2YB.
www.cardiffmet.ac.uk/csad
www.twitter.com/cardiffmetcsad
www.instagram.com/cardiffmet
www.facebook.com/cardiffschoolofartanddesign
Glasgow School of Art, MFA
The annual exhibition of work from the Master of Fine Art postgraduate programme at The Glasgow School of Art. (See below for details of GSA undergraduate degree shows)
29 May – 9 June 2019, The Glue Factory, 15 Burns Street, Glasgow, G4 9SE.
www.gsamfa.com
www.twitter.com/GSofA
www.instagram.com/glasgowschoolart
www.facebook.com/glasgowschoolofart
University of Salford, School of Arts and Media
The annual degree show returns to the New Adelphi building on the university’s main campus, celebrating work from across the School of Arts and Media, plus Architecture from the School of the Built Environment.
30 May – 7 June 2019, New Adelphi Building, University Road, Salford, M5 4BR.
www.twitter.com/uos_artsmedia
www.facebook.com/UoSArtsMedia
University of Cumbria
This show includes work across disciplines including Art of Games Design, Adventure Media, Digital Arts, Film & Television Production, Fine Art, Graphic Design, Illustration, Photography, Production, and Wildlife Media.
31 May – 8 June 2019, The Institute of the Arts, Brampton Road, Carlisle, CA3 9AY.
www.cumbria.ac.uk/degreeshow
www.twitter.com/CumbriaUni
www.instagram.com/cumbriauni
www.facebook.com/universityofcumbria
Hull School of Art and Design, Hull College
‘No.44’ is an exhibition by the 44th group of Fine Art students to graduate from Hull School of Art and Design’s Queens Gardens campus. Working across sculpture, collage, printmaking, installation, sound, painting, drawing, photography and mixed-media, their work is concerned with subjects including industry, the environment, the process of making and human identity. Jessie Davies, whose work is pictured above, is graduating from BA (Hons) Fine Art, and is featured in a-n’s Degree Shows Guide as part of our Class of 2019 feature. For her show she presents a series of 18 textural paintings and an ambient soundscape made in response to two freshwater reed beds, to create an immersive space which reflects on the threat to wetland ecologies.
31 May – 19 June 2019, Queen’s Gardens, Hull, HU1 3DG.
www.no44artscollective.co.uk/
www.twitter.com/hsadhull
www.facebook.com/no44artscollective
www.instagram.com/no44artscollective
Nottingham Trent University
Taking place across Nottingham Trent University’s City Campus, 1,318 creatives from 26 courses unite for one ambitious summer show that presents work by a new wave of talent. Benedict Carpenter, principal lecturer on BA (Hons) Fine Art at Nottingham Trent University, is one of five lecturers who share their thoughts in our What makes a great degree show feature. He says: “In the best degree show the work will be genuinely new and surprising. That is what’s great about working with fine art students: the opportunity to keep on learning.”
31 May – 9 June 2019, City Campus, 50 Shakespeare Street, Nottingham, NG1 4FQ.
www.ntu.ac.uk/c/art-and-design-degree-show
www.twitter.com/ntuartanddesign
www.instagram.com/ntuart
www.facebook.com/NTUart
Edinburgh College of Art, University of Edinburgh
For nine days Edinburgh College of Art is transformed into a public showcase of the work of its graduating students, the majority from undergraduate degrees. This year you can explore the work of students from Art, Design, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, and attend a series of free concerts and performances from Music students. Aidan Stephen is one of 10 graduating students featured in our Class of 2019. Stephen, whose oil paintings of Australian and Western landscapes are pictured above (top), embarked on his BA Fine Art course in his 40s “to learn how to paint,” but, he says, “instead learnt something completely new. Education in art is so complex. It’s not ‘read this, write that’, it’s understand yourself and act through a medium and stop caring what others might think”.
31 May – 9 June 2019, Edinburgh College of Art Campus, 74 Lauriston Place, Edinburgh, EH3 9DF.
www.eca.ed.ac.uk/event/eca-degree-show
www.twitter.com/eca_edinburgh
www.instagram.com/edinburghcollegeofart
www.facebook.com/ECA.edinburgh
Staffordshire University
This show celebrates the final-year work of over 250 students graduating from the BA (Hons) Awards within Art & Design and Media.
31 May – 9 June 2019, College Road, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 2DE.
www.staffs.ac.uk/events/degree-show/
www.twitter.com/staffsuni
www.instagram.com/staffsuni
www.facebook.com/staffsunicae
Glasgow School of Art
Glasgow School of Art’s annual undergraduate degree show features work from final-year students across the School of Design, School of Fine Art, Innovation School and the Mackintosh School of Architecture. This year sees Fine Art exhibiting for the first time in its new home at the Stow Building.
1-9 June 2019, Bourdon Building and Reid Building, Renfrew Street, Glasgow, G3 6RQ and Stow Building, Shamrock Street, Glasgow, G4 9JZ.
www.gsa.ac.uk/life/gsa-events/events/d/degree-show-2019/
www.twitter.com/GSofA
www.instagram.com/glasgowschoolart
www.facebook.com/glasgowschoolofart
University of Derby
This show offers visitors the chance to experience the very best of emerging contemporary art and design practice from the University of Derby’s final-year students, whose work explores pressing current issues while ‘setting the trends of tomorrow’.
1-12 June 2019, University of Derby, Britannia Mill, Mackworth Road, Derby, DE22 3BL and Markeaton Street, Derby, DE22 3AW.
www.derby.ac.uk/events/degree-show/
www.twitter.com/uniderbyfineart
www.instagram.com/derbyuniarts
University of Brighton
During early June University of Brighton’s campuses become huge exhibition spaces, with The Graduate Show at the Grand Parade and Edward Street galleries hosting work from graduating students from the School of Art, School of Media and School of Humanities.
1-9 June 2019, City Campus, 58-67 Grand Parade, Brighton, BN2 0JY; Edward Street, 154-155 Edward Street, Brighton BN2 0JG.
www.brighton.ac.uk/graduate-show/index.aspx
www.twitter.com/artsbrighton
www.instagram.com/bfap_
www.instagram.com/fineartprintmaking_uob
www.facebook.com/universityofbrighton
Newcastle University
58 emerging artists exhibit at the culmination of four years’ study on BA Fine Art at Newcastle University. The exhibition displays a diverse set of contemporary voices, practices and media including painting, new media, film, video, sculpture, photography, print, sound, performance and installation.
1-15 June, Hatton Gallery, Kings Road, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU.
www.ncldegreeshow.co.uk/
www.twitter.com/fineartncl
www.instagram.com/newcastlefineart
Kingston University
A celebration of students’ achievements with the work of the Fine Art course on show at the Avionics building, while the Knights Park and River House campuses host courses including lllustration, Animation and Graphic Design, Creative and Cultural Industries, Art Direction, Curation, Design Marketing, Fashion, Film, Filmmaking, Interior Design, Photography, Product and Furniture Design.
1-9 June 2019, Avionics, 53 Portland Road, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 2SH; Knights Park, Grange Road, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 2QJ; and River House, 53–57 High Street, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 1LQ.
www.kingston.ac.uk/events/item/3292/01-jun-2019-kingston-school-of-art-degree-show-2019/
www.twitter.com/kingstonschart
www.instagram.com/kingstonuniversity
www.facebook.com/KingstonSchoolofArt
Degree Shows 2019 Instagram Takeovers:
Our next Degree Shows 2019 Instagram Takeover takes place on 1 June with Jenny Steel posting from University of Salford. Be sure to follow @anartistsinfo and #andegrees19 to keep up with the latest posts and catch up with last week’s takeovers by FK McLoone at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design and Richard Taylor at City of Glasgow College.
a-n Degree Shows Guide 2019:
a-n Degree Shows Guide 2019 is available on a-n.co.uk/degree-shows alongside more news, views and pictures from this year’s shows.
You can view on Issuu here or join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #andegrees19.
Images:
1. Aidan Stephen
2. Evie Banks, Cardiff School of Art and Design final-year student 2019
3. Jessie Davies, Reeds 11, 51cmx51cm, acrylic on canvas.
4. Fearn Hepden, 1:2:2, 59x42cm, photographic print. Staffordshire University final-year Fine Art student 2019. Courtesy: the artist
More on a-n.co.uk:
Venice Biennale 2019: ‘May You Live In Interesting Times’ puts emphasis on borders, identity and the environment
2019-20 Mark Tanner Sculpture Award: Olivia Bax wins £8,000 prize for emerging artists
Exploding myths about money: the ‘bank’ printing artworks to pay off community debt
