Introduction

Anna Lumsden

BA Hair and Make-up for Fashion

I am extremely proud to introduce you to the Class of 2020 from the School of Media and Communication, London College of Fashion, University of Arts London.

This publication is a testament to the exceptional work of our graduating cohort and a celebration of the wider School community and the staff that have supported them at this unprecedented and critical time for our society, our planet and for the creative industries.

During the Covid-19 lockdown, our students have been necessitated to produce their final degree projects remotely and in digital contexts. They have shown resilience, creativity, and optimism and much of their work responds to this challenging context, addressing critical issues of our times including; ethics, climate emergency, identity and social justice.

The Pandemic has provided a period of slowing down for education, industry and society. This time of reflection and reset has the potential to lead to new modes of thinking, being, making and consuming. The zeitgeist is one of activism, reflection, community and care. Boarders have broken down and hierarchies have been flattened, offering quieter voices to be heard and for new opportunities and ways of thinking and doing to emerge. Some of our world’s most systemic problems are being called out, uncovered and addressed. The world needs creatives to kick start our society and our economy and to chart new approaches for the future now more than ever.

It is this climate that our graduates of 2020 will enter into further study and employment. Please take time to listen to their voices and the stories they have to tell. I know that the class of 2020 will make important and vital contributions to our society and our world and I wish them all the very best as they carve out their own creative directions going forward.

Dr. Jessica Bugg, Dean, School of Media and Communication, London College of Fashion, University of Arts London