Becky Dann Maximum Exposure Michael Dudock de Wit Oscar Nomination Kerri Ashworth Bridal Indulgence Yvonne Ntiamoah African Fashion
CREATIVE UPDATE April 2017
15
Contents
UCA Alumni Team Angela Chadwick
Head of Communications and Campaign Management Charlotte Ellison
Media Relations Officer Jayne Horswill
Content & Communications Officer
Upfront 02
Rachel Jewitt
Becky Dann 04
Jennifer Kelly
Michael Dudock de Wit 08
Get in touch
Grant Orchard 14
Designed by UCA alumni
Latest News
Picture This! Red Turtle
Hey BAFTA
Asha Ahmed Mwilu 16
Award for Terrorism Documentary Kerri Ashworth 18
Bridal Indulgence Erin Solomons 22
Content & Communications Officer Communications Manager alumni@uca.ac.uk She Was Only
shewasonly.co.uk Printed by Belmont
Welcome to Issue 15
Pee for Photography
Christopher Jelley 26
Small Step or Giant Leap?
In an exclusive interview with Creative Update, Oscar nominated animator Michael Dudock de Wit tells us: “Creative individuals who are passionate about what they do, will always be guided by that passion.” Pulling together this issue has shown us just how right he is. Regardless of the mediums they use, or the issues they chose to explore, it’s passion that unites all of our interviewees. We hope you enjoy learning more about Becky Dann, a photographer determined to challenge perceptions of disabled people. Then there’s Asha Ahmed Mwilu, a documentary maker who has risked life and limb to expose terrorism in the dangerous Mandera County. And who could fail to be inspired by Yvonne Ntiamoah, a Fashion graduate working tirelessly to create new opportunities for designers in her native Ghana. With creativity in schools under threat, never has it been more important for those working in the creative sector to share their experiences and inspire the next generation. If you have a story to share, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
The Power of Photojournalism
The UCA Alumni Team alumni@uca.ac.uk
Poetry Boxes
Yvonne Ntiamoah 30
The Rise of the African Fashion Scene Saki Yokota 34
Best of the Best
Liz Sargeant 36
Fashions Fade. Style is Eternal
Elmaz Ekrem & Dominika Ożyńska 40
European Migrant Crisis COVER An image from fashion editorial ‘Ardour’ featured in IntElegance Magazine. Fashion stylist: Liz Sargeant Photographer: Josh Auke Hair & makeup: artist Sarah Hubbauer Model: Ema Korabska Image retoucher: Jamike-Latif
Professor Bruce Brown 42
Creating a Research Culture from Scratch MA Fine Art students 44 Rebecca Vassie 46
CREATIVE UPDATE 01
Upfront
From impressive league table climbs to distinguished awards, it’s been a successful few months for UCA, its students and its alumni.
Graduate’s latest film lands in cinemas around the world One of the most anticipated films of 2016, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, directed by alumnus Gareth Edwards, landed in cinemas around the world in December. The first film in the Star Wars Anthology series starred Felicity Jones and Forest Whitaker and had a budget of $200 million. Its trailer was viewed more than 15 million times on YouTube in the first 24 hours online. Gareth graduated from UCA Farnham in 1996 and was welcomed back in 2012 to receive an Honorary Master’s degree for his work in film.
Top ranking for teaching quality We are pleased to have been identified as one of the country’s leading universities – and the UK’s top arts university – for teaching quality, after being ranked 14th in this category by The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017.
Gareth began his post-university career in visual effects, working on projects for the BBC before getting his break with the 2010 budget sci-fi movie Monsters. He not only wrote and directed his debut feature film, but also created all of the special effects – an achievement which earned him a nomination for an Outstanding Debut award at the 2011 BAFTAs. Following the success of Monsters, Gareth was signed up by Hollywood giants Legendary Pictures to direct a big-budget reboot of Godzilla. The film, which starred Bryan Cranston and Aaron Taylor Johnson, grossed over $500m worldwide and was one of the biggest blockbusters of 2014. The release of pre-sale tickets for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in November saw excessive demand, with the film breaking records to become the fastest selling pre-sale film of 2016.
UCA also entered the top ten in the Guide’s Modern Universities table, climbing five places to be ranked sixth. In the overall league table, we rose an impressive nine places to 53rd nationally. The Sunday Times said: “[UCA] has seen a near-60 place rise in our league table since ranking 111 in 2012, a rise that has coincided with a sharp improvement in scores in the annual National Student Survey (NSS). Our new indicator on teaching quality, published for the first time last year and based on a dozen questions related to course delivery, assessment and feedback in the NSS, saw UCA rank just outside the top 10 this year, remarkable for an arts institution.”
UCA joins with Open College of the Arts We are delighted to announce that the distance learning provider the Open College of the Arts (OCA) has officially joined the University. The agreement adds distance learning and online degrees at undergraduate and postgraduate level to UCA’s course portfolio, building on the vision of OCA’s founder Michael Young of making creative arts education accessible to everyone. 02 CREATIVE UPDATE
OCA is a charitable trust established in 1987. UCA has validated all of OCA’s undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications since 2012. Following the signing of the agreement, Acting Vice-Chancellor Alan Cooke said: “This new relationship between two long-established creative arts providers will lead to more choice and flexibility for students, providing opportunities for undertaking undergraduate or postgraduate courses to develop their career or improve quality of life. “At a time when the creative industries are thriving, with the Government’s 2016 Creative Industries Economic Estimates report showing that they are worth almost £10 million an hour to the economy, now is the time to
enhance access to arts education and to ensure that UCA is meeting the needs of different kinds of student who may have very different needs.” Gareth Dent, Principal of OCA, said: “Distance learning means students can start their degree when it suits them, without waiting for the start of a new academic year, and at considerably lower cost than for a residential university course. The agreement UCA is announcing today secures OCA’s vision of opening up access to creative arts education at university level to everyone, wherever they are in the UK and beyond.”
CREATIVE UPDATE 03
Picture this!
Becky Dann, BA (Hons) Photography, Farnham, 2016
When Becky Dann was creating her final project for her BA (Hons) Photography degree, she had no idea that it would lead to her meeting Professor Stephen Hawking, or that her story would be globally reported and shared on Facebook by the likes of Ashton Kutcher, Lil Wayne and George Takei. 04 CREATIVE UPDATE
CREATIVE UPDATE 05
But that’s exactly what happened when Becky submitted her work, a self-portrait entitled I’m Fine, to the student photo competition A World of Unfairness. Her image, which was aimed at challenging people’s perceptions of beauty and the way that beauty is portrayed in the media, went on to win the competition and draw attention to her own personal experience of growing up with Scoliosis. “My story actually ended up going viral which I was not expecting,” says Becky. “It was published in Australia, America, Poland, Hungary, Spain, China and so many more. I started to receive a lot of emails from people all over the world and my social media went a bit crazy. It was so amazing though and the support from everyone was lovely. I was interviewed by some big names too, such as A Plus and Mic.” Becky has lived with a form of Scoliosis, known as Kyphoscoliosis, since childhood. The condition causes a curvature of the spine and has meant that Becky has had to use a wheelchair for significant periods of her life and endure gruelling surgeries as a child to help improve her condition. 06 CREATIVE UPDATE
Using her own experience as inspiration for her final project, Becky created her self-portrait to highlight how one-dimensional the media can be in its portrayal of beauty. “I think the media focuses too much on looking a certain way to be ‘perfect’ and people aren’t celebrated for being natural. The media portrays beauty as something you can achieve with diets, make-up and surgery, but it doesn’t portray beauty as something that you’re born with, something you shouldn’t change. This perception doesn’t consider the aspects of a person’s life where they can’t change things even if they want to. I cannot change my disability – it isn’t something that can be ‘fixed’ with make-up.” As the winner of the competition, which is run by website disabilitytalk.co.uk, Becky was invited to meet Professor Stephen Hawking to talk to him about her work. “Honestly, it was the most surreal experience of my life,” Becky says on meeting the world-famous scientist. “I am so honoured to have been given the chance, but it still doesn’t feel real. I was told on the day that he wasn’t feeling very well so he might close his eyes but he’s still listening.
He did close his eyes when people were speaking, but as soon as I started speaking about my portrait he opened his eyes and kept them open and I could really tell he was listening to me which was so amazing.” And since the meeting, Becky’s portrait and message have been catapulted into the public eye. “I was surprised when my story started to go viral because millions of people were hearing about my personal life and viewing my image! “I expected to start to get some hate and negativity, and I wasn’t sure how I’d handle it because although I’ve accepted myself, it is still hard to listen to people be rude about my appearance when it’s not something I can change,” Becky says on how it felt to suddenly find herself in the spotlight. “There were a few messages that weren’t very nice, but other members of the public would respond to them and call them out on what they were saying, so it felt kind of nice that all these strangers were sticking up for me and being so lovely.” Much to her surprise, Becky’s message resonated with people around the world. “I wasn’t expecting so many people to contact me! It took me two days to sit down and respond to all the emails and Facebook messages I got. It was so lovely and some of them made me cry because people really poured their hearts out to me – a total stranger! It was nice to be able to help people. And to have celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and George Takei share your story on their own Facebook accounts is pretty surreal. “It just goes to show that art is so important in communicating issues because it’s a way in which people truly express themselves,” Becky continues. “Art comes in many forms: some people write, some draw, paint, or take photos. There’s so many ways of creating and I feel like it’s the most powerful means of expression. It shows how much it means to you and it’s a way to put everything you feel into a piece. I love being creative and without it I feel claustrophobic. “I need to express myself somehow and art is how I do it.” To view more of Becky’s work, visit: rebeccadann.wixsite.com/photography TOP LEFT Becky meeting Professor Stephen Hawking ABOVE Becky was stunned when the likes of Lil Wayne and Ashton Kutcher shared her story
CREATIVE UPDATE 07
Michael Dudok de Wit has had an incredible career in the
animation industry. With three Oscar nominations, an Oscar win, a BAFTA and a lot of renown at the major film festivals, Michael has built an incredible reputation.
The Red Turtle Director tells us about his third Oscar nomination
Fresh from this year’s Oscars where his latest film, The Red Turtle, received a nomination for Best Animated Film, we caught up with Michael to chat all things animation, motivation, and inspiration. How did it feel to receive another Oscar nomination?
The Red Turtle was never intended to be a commercial blockbuster, which means that it’s harder to convince audiences to see the film. There’s more of an independent, artistic style, it’s not a classic story with classic dialogue. An Oscar nomination, therefore, may encourage people who usually avoid artistic animation to see our film. Almost two hundred people worked on the film and it was for them that I really wanted our film to do well. For me personally, it was an incredible compliment of course, but because of all the individuals who have contributed to our project, and many have become good friends, the Oscar nomination was really important to me. 08 CREATIVE UPDATE
What was it like at the Oscars?
We Europeans like to have a cynical side. Although we enjoy the glitz and the glamour, we also like to keep our feet on the ground. But when you are there on Oscar Sunday, you really have to suspend your cynicism. The Oscars are the ultimate celebration of the American film industry and the setting is like a big film stage; it’s one big party where everyone radiates and you go there with the attitude to enjoy it fully. Of course it’s a surreal experience. Walking on the red carpet isn’t just a five minute walk, it takes a long time; you stop for interviews and photographs, you linger, you observe people around you and the noise from the crowd is intense. After the red carpet, there’s a social moment of drinking champagne in the foyer with everyone for an hour or so before the ceremony starts and there’s a great atmosphere once you’re in the auditorium. Those who are nominated for an award get the best seats in the house, right up at the front.
Michael Dudok de Wit, Animation Farnham, 1978
RIGHT AND OVERLEAF Stills from Red Turtle
CREATIVE UPDATE 09
You say that almost two hundred people have worked on The Red Turtle, what went into the making of the film?
Two hundred seems like a lot, but there were many different collaborators working on different aspects at different times. The bulk of the work was the animation itself. We struggled to find enough animators that were good enough, because the style is different from most films. The brief I gave them was to stick close to realistic body language. Most animated films are cartoony and I have enjoyed using these styles in my short films and commercials. But with this feature I wanted to see a more realistic design and more subtlety in the movements of our characters. How long did it take you to complete the film?
The producers and I agreed that it was far better for this film to have a small team working on it for a longer period, than to have a much larger team for a shorter period of time. Many animated films take four to six years to make overall, but with The Red Turtle we worked for about nine years all together. The development stage took over five years, and it involved writing the story, storyboarding and creating the animatic. This stage needed to be done thoroughly, because during the animatic phase we developed the detailed film language, right down to camera angles and timings – it’s an extremely creative phase. Some parts of the story worked well intellectually, but they didn’t feel right on an intuitive level, so we took time to make sure that the whole film felt right. The next stage, the full production with a larger team, took about three years and it involved drawing the animation and the backgrounds. The animation was almost all hand-drawn on Cyntiqs.
be a huge challenge, and I agree, but once that problem has been solved, I suspect that for many of us it’s the suffering of loneliness, year after year, that could be hardest. How did you present loneliness in the film?
The theme of loneliness is present in the story, but more than that I wanted to highlight our relationship with nature. The way in which nature can make us become more aware of our real self, particularly when there’s no one else there to reflect our identity. That’s what being alone in nature does, ideally; it challenges you to realise that you are not separate from nature. Deep down we have never been separate and we never will be. When you intuitively realise this, a deep existential anxiety begins to relax. Who do you admire in the animation industry?
There are a lot of people that have inspired me over the years and some of the most important ones are the three founders of Studio Ghibli in Japan: Isao Takahata, Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki. They’ve been making amazing animated films for over 30 years and I admire them tremendously. It was wonderful for me that I got to work with Takahata and Suzuki on The Red Turtle. Amongst others that have influenced me and that I admire a great deal are Jiro Taniguchi, a very sensitive and gentle comic strip artist who unfortunately passed away recently; Hergé, who with his studio created the Tintin books; Moebius, the well known French artist who beautifully explored the subconscious and the mystical and the Japanese artist Hasui Kawase. So far my inspiration comes from both the West and the East.
Where does your inspiration come from?
You’ve worked in the animation industry for a long time, what changes have you noticed?
In terms of storytelling, I’d say that most inspiration has come from myths, legends and fables. The Greek and Japanese myths resonate with me the most. I love magic and magic realism, but only occasionally and at carefully chosen moments, to make it stand out. When the first producers asked me to propose a synopsis of the story, I immediately went for the premise of the castaway on a desert island. Though it’s a much-used theme, I felt strongly about giving it a new approach. What happens to you if you are trapped on a desert, tropical island, seemingly for ever? I find that question fascinating. The castaway idea has long been one of my favourites. I would often daydream about it when I was a young boy, fantasising that I would manage pretty well if it happened to me. People may think that the lack of food, water and comfort would
When I was studying back in the mid 70s, the animation course at UCA, then called West Surrey College of Art, was one of the very rare animation courses in Europe. We were only six students per year – we felt like pioneers. Since then, there has clearly been a huge leap in the number of students in animation and the amount of interest in the industry as a whole. There are now opportunities in computer games and virtual reality as well as the more main stream commercials, shorts, series and feature films. Tools have made a huge leap too – you can make a film from your bedroom these days – whereas before, you needed help from experts. The art of animation has become much more accessible and we can explore a lot more. I find that very exciting.
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But all the advancements do create their own challenges. Because softwares are now so advanced and slick, they can give the illusion that we’ve created a professional film. Which means we need to stay alert; just because it looks professional, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we’ve made a good film. Essentially it all comes back to passion. It’s not only the professional quality of a film that’s crucial – everyone can achieve that quality – but it’s also the passion for the subject that has to shine through. When you’re at the beginning of your professional career, you have the advantage of seeing everything with openness and with freshness; you can push yourself to explore beyond the boundaries – you want to keep that, I believe. Even when you’ve got growing responsibilities and more weight on your shoulders, you don’t need to let that stop your curiosity or your creativity. I’m 63, yet I love to be curious and to explore, and I’m of course speaking for many of my colleagues who are about my age or older. In the animation industry we keep discovering new methods and new ways of expressing ourselves. I feel I should highlight that it’s not always a fun job – I’m not sure everyone will be thrilled to hear this – but if you’re an animator, especially a freelance animator, you go through lows as well as highs, feeling uninspired and feeling profoundly inspired, enduring periods with no income and periods with a generous income. Most of us go right through these low moments thanks to our relentless determination. What I’m trying to say is to not idealise animation; it can be tough. I know, it may sound easy for me to say that, because I’ve made a number of shorts and now a feature length film. I can’t complain at all. But I’ve lived through some awful periods too, and yet, honestly, they’ve been nourishing, they’ve helped me understand things. Usually you don’t see it at the time, but later when you can look back, you realise that going through the rough times has been really important. That’s my experience.
“Being creative is not a light occupation, it runs deep and for many of us it is all consuming”
Do you have any advice for recent graduates?
Creative individuals who are passionate about what they do will always be guided by that passion, there’s no advice that anyone can give to replace that guidance. To those who are not sure about their passion, I would say: go to one or two international animation film festivals, see those incredibly surprising short films, talk to people. It doesn’t matter if you’re shy, the filmmakers are ordinary people and often shy themselves. Most don’t have inflated egos and they’re happy to talk about their work. These festivals, such as Annecy, Manchester, London, Bristol and Ottawa can help you discover your passion, or uncover a new direction in which you might like to go in. CREATIVE UPDATE 11
Many artists, probably all artists, find that there are a lot of doubts around creativity – what to express, what perfection is, what originality is and how to be most creative. I’ve had those doubts, plenty, and I still have them now. I cherish them. It’s important for me to keep asking myself those essential questions and especially, to be honest with the answers. The essential questions will lead you in the right direction, even if it turns out to be a very different direction than you had anticipated. It’s also really important to seek out activities that nourish your passion. They can be anything, they don’t need to be your own creative activities. Go to performances, visit special buildings, travel, cook, be in nature. That passion you feel will be the same as when you create; you’ll be nourishing yourself and feeding your creativity. Do those activities from time to time and while you feel the love for that activity, think occasionally about the simple essence of your own creations, about what you would love to create more. Having the right tools is also stimulating. Once you’re set up properly, that’s when you can really work for long hours. I’m not necessarily talking about spending a lot of money; it’s not always true that the most expensive tools are the best. It’s what works best for you. When setting up the right work environment, it is striking the difference that a decent chair and a generous, solid table can make, and of course the right light. To give a small example, with my desk lamps I find it much more stimulating to use light bulbs that imitate daylight than to use those that create light with the classic warm yellow tint. One final point I’ll make in terms of advice, is to seek out good company. Not everyone understands the sensitivity of someone who is creative all day long. That’s just how it is. Some people don’t contribute to the right atmosphere, and it’s important to be aware of this. Keep in touch with others who are similar to you, who are creative and sensitive. They’ll help to keep you stimulated and focused. Even if you work alone, make the effort to keep in touch with them; it will encourage you when you are going through a struggling phase. I realise that these are obvious suggestions, yet they are the very best I can think of. Being creative is not a light occupation, it runs deep and for many of us it is all consuming, wonderfully all-consuming and painfully all-consuming.
RIGHT Michael’s priority was to create a more realistic body language within the animation, looking for subtlety within the movements of the characters
The Red Turtle is out in cinemas nationwide from 26 May.
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CREATIVE UPDATE 13
“I’ve worked on commercials and short films for nearly 20 years but I’ve never done anything as demanding as an animated series before.”
Hey BAFTA
Grant Orchard, BA (Hons) Animation, Farnham, 1995
Animation alumnus Grant Orchard is no stranger to creating award-winning work. His short film A Morning Stroll won the BAFTA in 2012 and was nominated for an Oscar in the same year, and now his most recent project, children’s television show Hey Duggee, has been awarded the 2016 Children’s BAFTA in the Pre-School Animation category. Images courtesy of Grant Orchard
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“It feels brilliant to have won,” Grant says of his latest accolade. “We were nominated last time and didn’t get it, so to have won in 2016 feels especially great.” The BAFTA-winning show Hey Duggee is produced by Studio AKA, where Grant works as a senior director, and is aimed at children between the ages of two and five. Broadcast on CBeebies, the series follows the activities of character Duggee, a scoutmaster and leader of the Squirrel Club. Each episode sees the characters learn a new skill and earn one of Duggee’s badges. Since its release in 2014, Hey Duggee, which is narrated by actor and presenter Alexander Armstrong, has recorded an impressive 62 episodes across two series. Despite the seven-minute length of each episode, a lot goes into making the pre-school show. “I’ve worked on commercials and short films for nearly 20 years but I’ve never done anything as demanding as an animated series before,” Grant says. “It’s relentless but also incredible fun. We were very generously given advice from people we knew on other shows such as Peppa Pig and The Amazing World of Gumball. They did warn us that it was tough, bless them.” “I can’t quite gauge how long one episode takes as all the stages overlap,” Grant explains. “For the first series, we had just under two years to produce 52 seven-minute episodes. The first episode we started was called Birdwatching and it was the last one we delivered. We learnt and developed so many aspects of the show as we went along that the first episodes had to be almost completely redone. The visuals and style and pacing all tighten up the more you work on it.” “There’s a core team of around 25 people who have worked on it over the last three years. Apart from the scriptwriters, we all work on one floor of Studio AKA - storyboarders, editors, animators, producers and designers. It’s quite a close knit working environment.”
Hey Duggee was up against tough competition at the BAFTAs, with the like of Clangers, Go Jetters and Sarah & Duck also nominated in the same category.
On why he thinks Hey Duggee stood out, Grant adds: “We designed, wrote and animated the show to be a shared experience for both the parents and the kids. Hopefully that comes through. We’ve had very positive feedback so we like to think we’re at least occasionally hitting the mark.” The series has aired in countries including Ireland, France, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Italy and America. To find out more, visit studioaka.com/FilmWorks/heyduggee
CREATIVE UPDATE 15
Graduate Asha Ahmed Mwilu was awarded the 2016 Overall Award at the CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards for her investigative documentary, Terror Crossing, which unearthed some of the ways that terrorists are managing to cross the border from Somalia into Kenya.
“When I travelled to the KenyaSomalia border, Al Shabaab militants had perpetrated dozens of attacks in mainland Kenya and killed more than 1,000 people.”
Graduate scoops award for terrorism documentary
Asha Ahmed Mwilu, MA Documentary Practices, Farnham, 2016
Images courtesy of Asha Ahmed Mwilu
16 CREATIVE UPDATE
With the UK government advising against all but essential travel, and the Kenyan government imposing a curfew* between the hours of 6.30pm and 6.30am, the notorious Mandera County is a region gripped by fear and unrest. The threat of terror attacks by Somalia-based militant group Al-Shabaab is extremely high and Mandera County has found itself in the international spotlight for being a weak link in border security and a hotspot for corruption. “When I travelled to the Kenya-Somalia border, Al Shabaab militants had perpetrated dozens of attacks in mainland Kenya and killed more than 1,000 people,” Asha says. Following months of research and piecing together information from major events, Asha spent almost two weeks with a video journalist in Mandera County to document and expose just how dangerous and lax border security is. “My strategy was to tell the story in very simple words,” she explains. “Kenyans had often interacted with heavy investigative reports about terrorism which often painted a complicated picture about the state of security. I think the audience appreciated that our investigations opened up a backstory to all the terror attacks we had suffered in such a coherent way. “In 2011, the Kenyan military launched an excursion into Somalia to flush out the Al Shabaab following a series of pirate attacks and high-profile abductions along the Coastal line. After such an important decision, Kenyans expected that our borders with Somalia would be heavily guarded to cushion the retaliatory attacks that were expected. Our investigations, however, revealed shocking details of a border manned by a handful of ill-equipped police officers during the day and left completely unguarded at night.
“We also unearthed the border county to be a major corruption zone with officers admitting on camera that they would often take bribes even from suspected terrorists to allow them to ferry goods into Kenya. “One other important intrigue we learnt during our production in Mandera was the clan dynamic among the community harbouring the region. Different clans from the larger Somali tribe occupy Northern Kenya, making it easy for Al Shabaab recruits to hide among the civilians and to use family ties in both Kenya and Somalia to remain undetected.” The CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards are the most prestigious and respected accolades for journalists across the African continent. On being named the joint winner of the Overall Award, Asha says: “It’s always a bittersweet moment to win an award in journalism because we are fuelled by so many selfless moments when we do our work. This award, however, is so different as it raises the credibility to my name as an African journalist and more importantly reignites debate on a subject I am most passionate about. It really is a great honour to be recognised on the continent.” *In place until 28 March 2017 at time of print.
CREATIVE UPDATE 17
While many spend years dreaming of their fairytale wedding day, alumna Kerri Ashworth dreamed of opening her own bridal shop filled with gowns in ivory and white. Now, nine years after graduating and with a well-established PR and marketing career to her name, Kerri is the proud owner of Bridal Indulgence, a boutique set in Farnham, Surrey. We caught up with Kerri to find out how it feels to own her own shop, what’s new in the world of bridal fashion, and what it is about wedding wear that keeps her inspired.
A Little Bridal Indulgence Kerri Ashworth, Foundation, Farnham, 2005. BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion & Imaging, Epsom, 2008
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RIGHT Kerri’s boutique, Bridal Indulgence
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What is it about bridal fashion that you most enjoy?
Aside from the obvious of being surrounded by beautiful bridal gowns, I absolutely love helping brides find their dream dress. Especially when their appointment at Bridal Indulgence is their first time trying wedding dresses on, because you get to help them discover what style suits them. Wedding dresses are very different to the clothes we wear every day and I love it when a bride is completely surprised by the style she ends up choosing.
I also have two seamstresses who come in and work in the shop which is a great benefit to both me and my brides. What do you enjoy most about owning your own business?
Whilst I was studying, I worked in a bridal shop on Saturdays and absolutely loved it. I always said that I would love to open a bridal shop of my own and after numerous years of working in PR & marketing, I took the plunge and opened my own bridal shop last year.
Obviously being my own boss is great and although it’s hard work and I have the pressure of making sales each month, I feel I have a much better work/life balance. Although I don’t really ever switch off from work and will often be emailing brides late at night, I don’t mind as I’m usually excited at the prospect of a potential new customer. Every bit of work I do is for my business to help make it a success which is a scary, but great feeling! And of course doing something I love and am passionate about is the most enjoyable part.
How are bridal trends shaped?
How did studying at UCA help you in your career?
The catwalk of course has the biggest influence on bridal trends in terms of fabrics and shapes. I think brides are more conscious now of being comfortable in their wedding dress, and designers are responding to this in terms of the fit and the fabrics that are being used. I will always ask a bride to sit down in the dress and walk around in it before ordering, to make sure that she is going to be comfortable wearing it.
Studying at UCA enabled me to have a career in PR and marketing. The work placements I did during my second year were invaluable and opened doors for me when I graduated. PR and marketing are essential skills to have and use, even more so because my shop is not on the High Street. I wouldn’t have any of the customers I’ve had without the use of PR and marketing.
Tell us how you came to open Bridal Indulgence?
“Wedding dresses are very different to the clothes we wear every day and I love it when a bride is completely surprised by the style she ends up choosing.”
Images courtesy of Kerri Ashworth
What would you say is one of the most popular styles in bridal wear at the moment?
Tulle skirts have become a very popular choice for brides because they move beautifully and create a very romantic look. And brides also seem to be opting for fuller skirts too! If you can’t wear a full skirt on your wedding day, when can you?! What does a typical appointment at your shop involve?
Each appointment is one-and-a-half hours and will vary slightly depending on whether it’s a bride’s first time trying dresses on or not. At the start of the appointment, I’ll chat to the bride to get to know her and find out detail such as if she has particular style in mind, what sort of wedding she’s having, and what her dress budget is. She’ll then have a browse through the dresses and pick out any styles that she’d like to try. As the bride tries the gowns on, we work to find out what she does and doesn’t like and what suits her best and I may choose other gowns that I think will work. Trying bridal dresses on can be quite overwhelming, so I keep the ones that she likes the best to the side and then she tries her favourites on again at the end. Usually, brides will go away to have a think and then book a second appointment before ordering their dress. 20 CREATIVE UPDATE
What do you find most challenging?
Being disciplined and staying on top of all admin and paperwork, which is the boring part of my job. If I have a day with no appointments, I have to be strict and get on with all my paperwork. I will either go to the shop to work or a coffee shop. What would you most like to achieve with Bridal Indulgence?
I would like Bridal Indulgence to be THE wedding dress shop that brides want to come to for the ultimate bridal experience. I am not on the High Street so I currently have to work very hard to generate awareness. Of course, the best way to achieve this is going to be word of mouth and recommendations on the service and gowns I provide! To find out more about Bridal Indulgence, visit: bridalindulgence.co.uk
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We’ve all seen pictures of trauma. Be it trauma in a daily news report, or photographs of historic, bloodied battles in textbooks. But are we truly connected to the images we see, or is there distance between the audience and the art? PhD student Erin Solomons asked these questions when she set about researching how trauma can be represented through photography and the body. In her quest for answers, she embarked on a new photographic development process which ultimately led her to create a wet-plate out of her own bile and urine.
Pee for Photography Erin Solomons, MPhil/PhD in Practice-based Photography, Rochester, 2015-present LEFT Erin’s unique photographic development process
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“One of my case studies is soldiers’ trauma from the American Civil War,” Erin explains about her research. “Specifically, I am analysing the tension between the soldiers’ written accounts of trauma from the battlefield, and the photographic portrayal of it. “In my project, my goal was to mix the different kinds of detachment and intimacy that are present in the soldiers’ letters and images of bodies on the battlefield. As a method to push the boundaries of identifiable representation, I decided to combine the ‘wet-plate’ photographic process with my own bodily fluids.” During the collodion, or wet-plate, process, Erin added different amounts of her own bile and urine as a metaphor for the imprint of trauma. CREATIVE UPDATE 23
Usually, the process involves pouring collodion onto a glass plate and, once it dries enough to make skin, sliding it into a rectangular box filled with silver nitrate. After a couple of minutes, the skin becomes sensitised to light. When the wet plate is removed from the box, it is placed under an enlarger where it is exposed to the light, which passes through a film negative. Afterwards, the plate is developed, fixed and washed. “The breakdown of the collodion skin and the chemicals in the developer became my areas of concentration,” Erin says of the reinvigorated proccess. “The collection of my urine was straightforward; whereas to collect my bile I needed to fast for a short period of time to ensure that remnants of food and drink were little to nonexistent.” The drastic intervention into the process was to counter the distance created by many artists when they convey trauma through their work. “At the beginning of my research, I was investigating the difference of diagnoses of personality disorders based on gender. During this time, I was looking at domestic abuse with women and wartime trauma with men as origins of continual exposure to violence, abuse and neglect. The American Civil War is a fascinating point in American history, which I think a number of artists have approached in a distanced way similar to how most historians have. “Since the ‘wet-plate’ process was used to document the Civil War, it became the starting point in my art practice. Even though the result of the process is a realistic image, the viscous chemistry is what creates it. The seepage of bodily fluids can be evidence of physical trauma, or a stressed emotional state. In particular, bodily fluids play an array of roles in how people relate to each other as well as their environment.
“My art practice, with its photographic base, acts a metaphor for breaking down the image to the extent that the materials are given comparatively equal, or even higher, importance. In the field of photography, I think there is a growing area for heightening the audience’s awareness of the materials and processes in images.” The research came with a number of ethical and health and safety considerations. Erin had to take into account additional ethical considerations which required approval, and a well-rounded standard of health and safety had to be methodically practiced. To work with human bio fluids, Erin was required to thoroughly investigate the appropriate techniques to use and dispose of them, and these were agreed on months in advance. And once all the safety and ethical considerations had been agreed, it was time for Erin to put the theory into practice and create some truly personal pieces of art. To find out more about Erin’s work, visit: erinsolomons.com
ABOVE Erin reinvents the wet plate process using her own bile and urine All images courtesy of Erin Solomons
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RIGHT Chris’ poetry boxes
A Harvest of Wild Art Over the last couple of years, for three months in the summer, a unique and creative art project has been taking place throughout the beautiful landscape of Exmoor National Park. Six small ‘poetry boxes’, scattered throughout a different area of natural beauty each year, collect impromptu poems, limericks and sketches from visitors as they pass. Christopher Jelley, who developed the project, has been working on this since 2014 with the support of the Lynmouth Pavilion project and Exmoor National Park with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
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“The diversity of content just goes to show the extent to which people have wanted to express themselves and contribute their thoughts and feelings”
Christopher Jelley, BA (Hons) HND Modelmaking Rochester, 1992
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The venture has been celebrated for encouraging people to pause and reflect on the natural beauty surrounding them. Letting the landscape inspire them, they create something that can be left for the next visitor to enjoy. In a time when the digital world seems to invade every part of our lives, Chris’ project has people reconnecting with the natural world, and more importantly, the simplicity of pencil and paper. “The idea actually came from another of my projects that I’ve been working on,” Chris explained. “Similar in concept, I’d leave a book in a box along The Coleridge Way walking trail, that was started by a published author. Walkers would find the box, read the story so far and then add their own paragraph taking the story on a brilliant snaking journey. The story boxes were really successful but when I changed the concept to poetry and drawing I found a whole new level of interactivity, even after the pages were full I’d find words written on train tickets, scraps of paper and even till receipts” – and so the poetry tin project came to life.
ABOVE A sketch collected from a box at the Tarr Steps in the summer of 2015 LEFT A poem placed in a box at the village of Dunster during summer 2016
So far, Chris has collected over 5,000 entries to the boxes. He explains that location is an important factor in receiving such a high volume of entries each summer. Not only are the sights and views around the area significant, but also the seclusion, “they need to be quiet and unobserved spaces so people are completely open to write,” says Chris; having found that when placed in busier public places, the boxes were not nearly as fruitful. The entries in the boxes vary in subject and skill, from sketches of the local scenery, to limericks of journeys to the area, even poems on the topic of Brexit. “The Brexit poems were really interesting, I didn’t expect the project to capture that sentiment and piece of history,” Chris explains. “The diversity of content just goes to show the extent to which people have wanted to express themselves and contribute their thoughts and feelings.”
The response from the public has been outstanding, so much so that the project has caught the attention of publishing house Fly Catcher Press, who, working with Chris, have published a collection of the works in a new book, ‘The Exmoor Poetry Boxes – A harvest of wild words’. The National Trust House in Greenway - which used to be Agatha Christie’s holiday home – have also recently been in touch with Chris to look at working together. This small yet charming project is reminding people of what it is to appreciate the nature and beauty that we have all around us, reminding us that even in the simplest of ways, we can all be creative, we can all use the most basic of tools to create something inspiring. Exmoor National Park has flick through books of the collections available on its website, or check out Chris’ latest project, Exeter Poetry Pin, at exeter.poetrypin.info
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The Rise of the African Fashion Scene Yvonne Ntiamoah, Fashion & Design Epsom, 1997
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The culture and heritage of Africa has long since had an impact of designers all over the world with its alternative patterns, vibrant colours and unusual textures. Recent shows from design houses have all displayed African traits within their styles, whether this be tribal marks, prints or silhouettes incorporated within their work.
A Celebration of Art 2015, garments by Papa Opponge
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Nevertheless, within the fashion industry, the concept of ‘African fashion’ is somewhat of a small player on a much larger stage. More interest and investment in the designs and ideals coming from the likes of London, Paris, Milan, and New York has led to others taking more of a back seat. But within Africa, fashion is thriving, and nowhere is this more true than in Ghana – a nation which strives to define its own identity within the colossal, and often brutal market that is the fashion industry. Not only does Ghana possess a rich heritage that has long since inspired local and international artisans/designers alike, but it also gains a unique edge from its textiles industry that’s rich in patterns, weaving, colours and textures, helping to lead the way for a progressive fashion industry. One woman at the forefront of this developing industry is UCA graduate Yvonne Ntiamoah, who is going to incredible lengths to push Ghana’s fashion scene to new heights. Yvonne says: “The culture and heritage of Ghana is in the contours and unconscious minds of the designers. Their interpretations of current trends always have a twist of colour and texture that is uniquely identified to the designer’s environment.” Having worked in London as a fashion designer for over 15 years, Yvonne moved back to Ghana in 2011 and is now the head of fashion at Radford University where she helps to cultivate the country’s new and emerging talent. With experience of working with the UN on their Catwalk of the World, as well as taking part in London’s Graduate Fashion Week, Yvonne gained the right industry knowledge to set up Ghana’s own Graduate Fashion Week. “The students get to express themselves by pushing creative boundaries, resulting in the most inspirational event in Ghana,” she says.
However, it’s often the perceptions from outside Africa that can be restricting for the local designers, “They’re placed in a box of ‘African Design’ that can be limiting,” Yvonne explains, “They are often accused of copying and not being true to themselves, when they explore outside these boundaries of Africa and look at other influences.” But despite this, Yvonne finds that the most rewarding part of her role is working with energetic and creative minds that have the enthusiasm to push the boundaries. “The continuous connection to the world through the web, has led to the fusion of cultures and styles, breeding a new niche for the African designers. A new twist to African culture mixed with modernity,” she explains. “But the African fashion industry is still in its infancy; it has the freedom of a non-confined industry which allows the liberty of expression. Such freedom is perhaps something that cannot be so freely enjoyed by cultures in the West due to consumerism.”
LEFT Beautiful Imperfection 2016 Collection by Steve French ABOVE Group shot with Yvonne in Radford Fashion Studio 2016
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Best of the Best
RIGHT Saki’s latest furniture designs. © Saki Yokota
Product Design Graduate Wins Red Dot Award
After receiving a prestigious design prize for her innovative hoop lighting which she created during her studies, Saki Yokota, who completed an MA in Product Design, is continuing to establish herself as a successful industrial designer in Japan. Creative Update caught up with Saki to find out how it felt to receive the Red Dot: Best of the Best award, what inspires her latest designs and what tips she has for other aspiring designers. “Designing Hoop was quite different to my work as an in-house designer,” says Saki on the award-winning product that she created during her MA. “When I originally worked as a furniture designer in Japan, I was interested in the latest trends of industrial design. During my studies, I wanted to explore these trends further and my Hoop lighting brought together the ideas of art and industrial design. “On arriving in the UK, I noticed that it was daylight for a much shorter period of time which surprised me and this influenced where I would start when creating my light. I decided on my product because of the importance of light and the impact it has on being comfortable. My idea was for the light to move slightly to mirror daytime.” 34 CREATIVE UPDATE
Saki Yokota, MA Product Design, Farnham, 2015
The experience of winning a Red Dot: Best of the Best award, a recognised, international seal for good design, has helped Saki’s career significantly and she has since returned to Japan to continue her career. “The experience was good for broadening my horizons as I received the award for the most experimental project that I’ve worked on to date. “When it was announced at the company I now work for, my co-workers were really pleased for me and it helped to show the variety and versatility of what I am able to design. I have gotten increasingly interesting, challenging and bigger tasks because the award is so highly regarded.” Saki is now focusing her skills on designing practical and comfortable work stations, and a key interest of hers is combining crafts with mass-production in order to make the items more appealing and attractive.
RIGHT Saki receiving her award ABOVE Saki sketches out her designs. © Saki Yokota
“I’m interested in combining current trends of materials and finishes used in arts and crafts with my designs in order to connect crafts with industry. I think that adopting these elements when designing products that are going to be so widely distributed is something that the industry is quickly catching on to. The philosophies of the arts, alongside the materials and techniques of crafts, enable designers to add a preciousness and attractiveness to mass-produced products.” Having made the decision to study for an MA in Product Design after already starting a design career in Japan, Saki says: “I think it’s important to find your interest first. I get my inspiration from crafts as well as social trends. It’s essential that designers are aware of the biggest influences in society at any given time, and how these affect and change the products we use.” For up and coming designers, Saki says that problem solving is all part of creating a finished product that looks good and works well. “It’s important to always have doubts. Finding solutions to interesting doubts helps improve the quality of your designs, and trial and error is part of that process. Believe that you can find the best way! I think that any industrial designer needs perseverance, but it’s a very rewarding job because as a designer, you can make something better.” CREATIVE UPDATE 35
Fashions fade.
From organizing fashion shoots for the likes of British Vogue and Stylist Magazine, to managing PR events for brands including Vivienne Westwood and Valentino, Fashionista Liz Sargeant has spent over a decade immersed in the fashion industry. Now running her own business involving a heady mix of stylising, editorial pieces, and fashion shoots, Liz tells us the story behind a career that she always dreamed of.
Style is eternal. Liz Sargeant, BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion & Imaging, Epsom, 2008
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‘Insomnia’ (Linger Magazine) Fashion Stylist & Creative Director: Liz Sargeant Photographer: Mehul Derodra Hair & Makeup Artist: Sarah Hubbauer Model: Pamela Capone
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‘Ardour’ (IntElegance Magazine) Fashion Stylist: Liz Sargeant Photographer: Josh Auke Hair & Makeup: Sarah Hubbauer Model: Ema Korabska
LEFT ‘Behind The Scenes’ at one of Liz’s Shoots Fashion Stylist: Liz Sargeant Model: Izzy Herriett
“Although being your own boss is exciting it can also be a challenge as only you, and you alone, are responsible for your self-motivation.” I began my career in fashion PR, working for in-house designers and creative agencies. These included Vivienne Westwood, Valentino, Karla Otto and Purple PR. My role mainly involved assisting in the management and planning of events, selecting and allocating samples required by media to generate maximum press coverage/ brand exposure, meeting with key press on a daily basis to secure product placement and writing press releases for feature opportunities. After just under four years working in fashion PR, I decided to switch direction and subsequently moved into editorial, helping out in the fashion departments at several London based magazines such as Stylist and Drapers. I had already experienced this side of the industry whilst working as an intern at Vogue during my placement year when still at university. I was now heavily involved in the shoots, helping with the day-to-day running of every aspect from the initial prep to the shoot itself. The buzz I got from being in this environment was something I’d never really experienced when working in PR. It was the styling aspect that drew me in and led me to realise it was the area where I wanted to focus my 38 CREATIVE UPDATE
career. I went on to assist a number of established freelance fashion stylists, which included Angie Smith, Suzie Street and Beth Buxton. The experience was invaluable and in 2014 I decided to bite the bullet and venture out alone. Setting up my own styling business was the best decision I could have made but it wouldn’t have been possible without the knowledge I gained along the way. It certainly wasn’t something I went into blinkered. My day-to-day work involves a mix of VIP dressing, editorial styling and fashion writing. I work freelance for various magazines, styling fashion editorial shoots and writing style reports. There are no set hours, and no day is ever the same. An average week will consist of running to designer showroom appointments, pulling clothes for shoots/client fittings, networking at fashion events and writing catwalk reports. London Fashion Week is my craziest period as this is when I get to preview all the new season designer collections, which I will then review and call-in for forthcoming jobs. It doesn’t mean that everything else stops though, and I’ve been known to survive the five-day period on less than three hours’ sleep!
My studio doubles as a live-in space so there’s always a constant foot-flow of samples coming through the door. I have to be very organised as it’s the only way to keep sane amid the inevitable craziness. Although being your own boss is exciting it can also be a challenge as only you, and you alone, are responsible for your self-motivation. This was the biggest hurdle I had to overcome when I first went freelance. The fashion shoots are still my favourite area. Nothing quite compares to the creative energy generated in this team environment. Everyone on set (photographer, fashion stylist, hair stylist, makeup artist) is brought to the project based on their expertise in their given field. Being able to work in a team and bounce ideas from each other is a crucial part of the job and the real magic is watching these creative ideas come to life. Similar to my day-to-day schedule, no one shoot is ever the same and no outcome can ever be predicted. It’s the collective creativity of the people involved in the shoot that shapes the final product, and seeing this evolve is what makes my job so worthwhile and rewarding. For further information about Liz and her career, visit her website at lizsargeantstyling.com or follow her on Instagram @LS_Styling
LEFT ‘White Box’ (Linger Magazine) Fashion Stylist: Liz Sargeant Photographer: Karl Bartley Hair Stylist: Darcie Harvey Makeup Artist: Sarah Hubbauer Model: Julia Priestley
FAR LEFT ‘Stranger Thing’ (Phoenix Magazine) Fashion Stylist: Liz Sargeant Photographer: Jamike-Latif Hair Stylist: Darcie Harvey Makeup Artist: Rhea Le Riche Model: Izzy Herriett
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Animation Graduates Document the European Migrant Crisis The European migrant crisis started to grip the world in 2015. Heartbreaking images of desperate people fleeing poverty and conflict in overcrowded and unsafe boats became daily features on the news. And seemingly positive relations between European nations dissolved as outrage at the number of refugees attempting to seek asylum took over. Yet there were stories of hope, kindness and strength among the devastation, and two Animation students took it upon themselves to document the heart-rending stories of local fishermen rescuing people from the water in Lesbos, Greece.
Elmaz Ekrem & Dominika Ożyńska, BA (Hons) Animation, Farnham, 2016
ALL IMAGES © Elmaz Ekrem & Dominika Ożyńska
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“Our film takes on a unique viewpoint, letting the voice of people who have taken on this responsibility of rescuing refugees be heard,” says Elmaz Ekrem, who along with fellow student Dominika Ożyńska, created The Law of the Sea for a final-year project. The film was later selected to be broadcast on Channel 4 as part of the Random Acts series. “The fishermen that we interviewed are not trained coastguards, but normal people like you and me who get up and go to work each day in order to provide for themselves and their families,” Elmaz explains. “These fishermen were never asked to help people as they made the deadly crossing, but they do so without question. The fishermen described how the daily rescue efforts of people on the dangerously-overcrowded boats had become a part of their normal routine, demonstrating how this massive humanitarian crisis has essentially become the norm.” Along with a translator, Dominika travelled to Lesbos in January 2016 to interview fishermen and people on the island and find out about their experiences. On her return to the UK, the pair set about selecting the most telling interviews to use for their short film. Dominika says: “The refugee crisis evoked many different reactions from different people in different countries – some were supportive while some opposed letting refugees into Europe.
“However, when I went to Lesbos, I was shocked that none of the fishermen or local people questioned whether to help refugees or not. The crisis affected them directly and turned their lives upside down. They still accepted it and did everything they could to help those that were coming to the island. I think it’s important to show people this perspective – one of unconditional help and support for those in need. Because for me, it’s not only the law of the sea – it is a universal law – if someone needs help, you help them. It’s easy to forget about it when the issues seem far away.” On turning real experiences into their animated film, Elmaz adds: “After we had chosen which interviews and audio tracks to use, we began painting each frame using pictures of the fishermen we had taken in Lesbos as reference. The animation method used was a mix of acrylic on paper and oil on glass – a form of under camera technique. “It was incredibly exciting for it to be broadcast on Random Acts and to tell the amazing stories of these fishermen to a much wider audience.” The Law of the Sea broadcast on Channel 4 in November 2016 and can be viewed here: randomacts.channel4.com/
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About the author Emeritus Professor David Buss, a graduate
of the BA Fine Art course at Maidstone College of Art, recently met with Professor Bruce Brown, who studied Graphic Design at Canterbury and is an alumnus who has made a major contribution to establishing a research culture in Art and Design. They discussed the enormous change the sector has undergone with respect to research since their student days in the 1960s.
Professor Bruce Brown, Dip AD Graphic Design, Canterbury, 1971
Creating a Research Culture from Scratch Practice-based research in Art and Design has a relatively short history. The 1960s was a Golden Age for art colleges: artists, fashion designers and photographers were the celebrities of the day, with creative individuals such as David Hockney, Mary Quant, Terence Conran and David Bailey becoming household names. Art college lecturers were expected to be ‘practising’ artists and designers. When Bruce and I studied in the 1960s, there was no research culture in Art and Design; no funding for research; no staffing with a specific remit for research; no systematic recording and evaluation of research activity; and no shared language for research in Art and Design. So how did the seismic changes come about that resulted in the vibrant, albeit still evolving, research culture that is now a fundamental feature of Higher Education in Art and Design? And what challenges did the sector face as it embarked on this journey? Professor Bruce Brown has arguably contributed more than anyone to this remarkable transformation. Bruce was Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Brighton until his retirement last year. He chaired the UK Funding Council’s panel for assessing research in the Arts in RAE 2008, subsequently chairing one of the four Main Panels in the Research Excellence Framework in 2014 where he was responsible for a broader range of disciplines across the Arts and Humanities. What follows is based on our conversation and Professor Brown’s paper ‘The Ecology of Artistic Research’, which he presented to the Royal Academy of Performing Arts, Prague, in April 2016. An important catalyst for the development of a research culture for Art and Design was the merger of many of the larger 42 CREATIVE UPDATE
Art Colleges into the expanding Polytechnics. Most of the latter had established embryonic research communities, primarily but not solely in science and technology, and these offered sources of advice and encouragement to the Art and Design community. However, it was not until 1992, when polytechnics became universities, that the non-university sector of HE was allowed to compete for research funding. It was to be a further six years before the Arts and Humanities Research Board was established with the first national scheme to award doctoral scholarships in the creative arts. The primary challenge facing the Art and Design community was to debate and define what would constitute ‘research’ in the discipline and to articulate the important distinctions between practice, scholarship and research. An important objective of research in Art and Design, Bruce suggests, is to test the boundaries of existing knowledge in order to determine its limitations. This is nuanced to reflect the conditions of research in our discipline, as research in Art and Design will also pursue the discovery of new knowledge and the recovery of lost knowledge. The three key elements of research in Art and Design are: Research Outputs – objects, performances, compositions, films, digital artefacts, monographs and papers; Research Environment – research scholars, research students, research income, intellectual and administrative infrastructure, facilities and equipment; Research Impact – the benefits of research to individuals, culture, society, and the economy.
Describing the challenges facing the sector, Bruce’s view was that, while many in the creative arts community had championed practice-based research, others remained unconvinced. Practice is the modus operandi for research in numerous disciplines within and outside the creative arts. Many scholars are also practitioners just as many practitioners are also scholars. Scholarship is not research, but an essential component of the overall research ecology, which will include a balance of work that is either curiosity-based or challenge-driven. It was important that the community developed a clear understanding of the relative merits of, and differences between, research and advanced practice in Art and Design – the latter often being presented as if it were the former. In ‘The Ecology of Artistic Research’, Bruce states that the introduction of research assessment frameworks based on the long-standing traditions of research in the life and physical sciences, where much of the material is text-based. It had tended, at one extreme, to skew the type of outputs produced by artistic researchers or, at the other, stimulated a special case argument for practice as research. Whilst acknowledging that an artefact, performance or composition can exist in both domains – practice and research – Bruce emphasises that advanced practice by itself is not research until its research imperatives have been effectively archived and shared by the researcher. Bruce says: “The historic relationship between practice and research in the creative arts still serves to cloud this issue. In broad terms, practitioners engage with audiences whereas researchers engage with users. There are, of course, many overlaps between these two constituencies as well as a fundamental difference of intent. Practitioners and their audiences will often work together to co-create a work in which the dynamic nature of a reading, or an interpretation, is central to the creative process. In this case practitioners will often conceal, or disguise, the underlying intention in their work so that audiences have sufficient space to collaborate in the construction of new and novel readings.” Research in Art and Design has generally tended to be enquiry-based, conducted by individual scholars pursuing their ideas without a specific outcome or application in mind. There is another equally important form of enquiry that is challengedriven and more familiar to the sciences, where teamwork is a norm and where researchers undertake their work with a particular objective in mind.
In confirming that enquiry-based and challenge-driven research are equally important, Bruce describes the character of the latter as follows: “The starting point for enquiry-based research is generally that of the knowledge and skills possessed by each researcher. In challenge-driven research, however, knowledge and expertise may be harvested from a number of research disciplines and/or research users in order to address the challenge in mind. This approach, in turn, stimulates the formation of rich multi-disciplinary teams that will, by their needs, evolve particular, if not unique, working methods.” The creative arts community’s traditional focus on enquirybased research, and its relative separation from academia’s overall research ecology (which embraces the life sciences, physical sciences and social sciences), tends to hamper opportunities to develop a well-rounded research environment – one that generates and translates knowledge into applications. An important dimension of researchers’ outcomes is sharing knowledge with others. Bruce is encouraged by the growing number of researchers in Art and Design who are developing forms of scholarship appropriate to research in their discipline, thereby establishing a permanent legacy for future scholars that is both accessible and comprehensible to a wide range of academic disciplines and research users – but, he regards this is as an ongoing project still to be matured. So just how much progress has Art and Design made with the development of a research culture? Bruce is both positive and cautious: “There is now sufficient evidence from successive research assessment exercises (in the UK at least) to suggest that the quality of artistic research is holding its own alongside other research disciplines and that there is considerable beneficial impact in society, and the environment, from this work. “The new digital era gives us most of the tools and means to make anything we want to make. No longer should we wonder how something can be made but, instead, think why we would want to spend precious time and resources making it. In this respect we no longer face a poverty of means but the consequences of a school system that has driven creativity and innovation out of the curriculum to breed a poverty of imagination – and, without imagination, we will not be able to solve any of the major challenges facing society.” It would seem that arts and humanities researchers still have more work to do. Alumni wishing to develop their own research profiles can take advantage of a series of UCA webinars: uca.ac.uk/research-development/news/research-webinars
Image by Andy Weekes
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Our students embark on postgraduate study at different stages of their lives and for a plethora of reasons. We caught up with MA Fine Art students Hilary Champion, Cate Field and Susan Merrick to learn more about their motivations.
Small step or giant leap?
Cate Field, MA Fine Art, Farnham, 2017
The teacher Susan Merrick, MA Fine Art, Farnham, 2017
The practising artist The former student
Hilary Champion, BA (Hons) Fine Art, Farnham, 2009 and MA Fine Art, Farnham, 2017
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Hilary Champion is no stranger to the School of Fine Art and Photography at UCA Farnham. “I graduated from here in 2009, but I really, really missed it. I missed the intellectual stimulus, I missed other students, the library, and I just wanted to push myself a bit more. I just wanted to come back and get terrified again. I wanted to be back here in the thick of it.” Being a mature student, rather than wanting to mix with students of a similar age, Hilary embraces the different perspective of younger, undergraduate students around her. “I’m old enough, and mixing with 20-year-olds is great, because they’ve got completely different views on life to me – different experiences, different interests.” Hilary hasn’t yet decided where her postgraduate journey will lead, but says, “It’s given me a lot more confidence and enthusiasm. It’s about coming back to get the stimulation and just to enjoy it while I’m here.” Hilary’s MA show is centred around the theme ‘Post-truth politics and fake news’.
When she’s not in the studios at UCA, Susan Merrick is a practising artist as well as a British Sign Language interpreter. “I came here because I had been practicing as an artist at the time for about four years on my own and I’d hit a ceiling in terms of networks, intellectual stimulus, where I was going with my work. I needed to step it up and I thought I could only do that if I was surrounded by other people doing the same thing.” Word of mouth was what originally brought Susan to UCA: “My neighbour was doing an MA here and she said go and have a look around. I went into the Fine Art department and I loved being in that space.” Susan had a clear ambition to improve her vocation as an artist, so did her postgraduate study fulfil her aspirations? “It’s made my career, I have to say. Partly because of the confidence it’s given me, but also because of the connections that I’ve made in terms of other artists. So I’m not just stuck in a bubble – I’m finding out about other artists, about exhibitions and other things that are going on that I just wouldn’t have had access to before I came here.” Susan’s MA show focuses on her research on language and power.
Cate Field spent nearly two decades in the classroom as an Art & Design teacher before deciding to make the switch from educator to scholar. “I needed a challenge, I got very lazy. I’ve been a practicing artist for almost 20 years and I just felt that I had come to a halt, and I needed to have some more intellectual stimulation to really just push myself that bit more. And that is exactly what’s happened, it’s been brilliant.” After coming to UCA to view the undergraduate and postgraduate shows, Cate had made up her mind: “I was really impressed with what was going on so I decided this is where I needed to be – so that’s what I did.” In terms of career progression, the advantages of her postgraduate experience are two-fold. “I’m a teacher and I want to pursue my career further, so having the Masters is part of that academic progression.” Cate’s MA show is a series of soundscapes and films about people on the edge of society and abandoned places.
INTERESTED IN POSTGRADUATE STUDY? UCA is now offering MA Fine Art via distance learning through the Open College of the Arts: oca.ac.uk/ma-fineart Find out more about our campus-based programmes here: uca.ac.uk/study/levels-of-study/postgraduate
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Rebecca Vassie, BA (Hons) Photography, UCA Rochester, 2008
The Power of Photojournalism: A Tribute to Rebecca Vassie After spending several years working as a commercial photographer in London, Photography graduate Rebecca Vassie decided to move to Uganda to begin forging what was to become a successful career as an international photojournalist. With the opportunity to capture events and moments that she felt passionate about and to highlight the plights and stories of marginalised people, Rebecca quickly established herself and by 2014, her work was being published around the world by the likes of The Guardian, The Independent, The New York Times and The Washington Post. However in March 2015, while photographing Kyangwali, a large refugee camp in western Uganda, Rebecca suffered a severe asthma attack which is thought to have been triggered by her unknowingly eating a sauce containing peanuts, to which she was allergic. Tragically, Rebecca died and now, in her memory, the Rebecca Vassie Trust has been established to support emerging photographers and promote the art of narrative photography. “In the aftermath of her death, family, friends and colleagues wanted to do something 46 CREATIVE UPDATE
to honour Beccy’s life, to build something positive from such a tragic loss,” says her sister, Kelly. “We also wanted to find a way to preserve and promote her values, and offer other photographers the kind of support from which Beccy would have benefitted. “Beccy was passionate about showing us images of injustice, and about telling stories of the everyday lives of marginalised or lesserknown people in far-flung places. “The founding idea of the Rebecca Vassie Trust is to carry on this kind of work, to give young or emerging photographers a platform. Our vision for the Trust is built on providing opportunities for up-and-coming photographers to undertake narrative photography projects which they would otherwise lack the funds to complete. We are also looking more widely at professional development opportunities for earlyto-mid career photographers.”
The board of trustees includes fellow UCA graduates Thorbjørn Tellefsen and Ben Bird, Rebecca’s mum Janet Vassie, and sister Kelly Vassie, as well as playwright, theatre director and journalist Adam Barnard. The trustees believe that one of the reasons Rebecca’s work was in such high demand was due to the quality of interaction captured in her images. They say: “Beccy's images are powerful because she had a human approach to photography. As well as being documentary pieces, her work has a storytelling aspect to it. She really cared about the people whose lives she was portraying. She had a wonderful way with people; she’d always connect and, where appropriate, try to make her subjects feel valued and at ease. Her images draw a connection between her subjects as people and the viewers as people. She was also determined and curious, and sometimes swum against the tide, and we think that this too shows in her work.” Rebecca’s photograph of Ugandan Pride was used widely in the coverage of the 2014 Pride parade in Kampala, with outlets including The Guardian, The New York Times and the Huffington
Post commissioning her work. “There is a small collection that the trustees have marked as our favourites, but we all agreed that “Pride” stands out. It is a striking image that speaks of freedom and striving to be who you really are, and want to be – that was Beccy. It also reminds us of how proud we are of Beccy’s achievements in such a short time,” they add. The Rebecca Vassie Trust now aims to inspire other photographers to follow in Rebecca’s footsteps. The winner of the first prize, James Arthur Allen, secured a bursary of £1,200 as well as printing, exhibition support and mentoring. In addition to the winner’s prize, the Trust has also been able to support shortlisted candidates by offering them access to industry professionals.
TOP LEFT Image by Craig Radcliffe ABOVE Photograph taken by Rebecca Vassie of LGBT Pride 2014 Entebbe, UGANDA. ASSOCIATED PRESS
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Photograph taken by Rebecca Vassie of Rwandan Refugees at Nakivale Settlement Uganda (Rebecca Vassie 2014)
ABOVE Photograph taken by Rebecca Vassie 2014 Portrait of Coco from South Sudan for UNICEF (UNICEF UGANDA Rebecca Vassie)
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“Beccy had some great tutors at UCA, both challenging and supportive – just the right balance to encourage and establish her as a young photographer,” says Kelly. “Very early on at UCA Beccy found editorial photography a strong pull and this is what drove her desire for a career in photojournalism. The technical resources and training at UCA allowed her to explore and refine her practice; even though she eventually used a digital camera, her technical understanding of light plays a huge part in the beauty and power of her images.” Looking to the future, the Trust hopes to continue to offer young photographers a unique opportunity to nurture their talent and to tell stories that they too feel strongly about. “Beccy often found it frustrating that the stories and
issues she thought were important were not picked up by the media because they were not ‘on trend’,” the Trust adds. “We’d like to eliminate this barrier somewhat and offer photographers the chance to tell the stories we might not otherwise have seen. Another ambition is to establish career development opportunities for photojournalists, and in particular female photojournalists, in Uganda. Beccy had a fantastic network of friends and colleagues in Kampala and we’d like to work with them to set up some provision for emerging Ugandan talent.” To find out more about Rebecca’s story and the Rebecca Vassie Trust, visit: rebeccavassietrust.org
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