Create@Salford

Engagement, creativity, innovation and inspiration. var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-22709166-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();

[createatsalford]

In the Digital Performance Lab at MediaCityUK all this week, you can see an exhibition of prints, live games and showreels made by students on our Animation and Computer Video Games course. The exhibition runs until Friday 17 June. Find out more here: http://ow.ly/6B3P30185Xn

[createatsalford]

Our 2016 Degree Show launched yesterday with a buzzing preview. It features final year work by students on a range of courses - from Visual Art to Graphic Design, Photography, Fashion Image Making and Styling, and Interior Design. Take a look at a selection of the work. You can see more at Allerton Studios until Friday 17 June. http://ow.ly/oocj301803d

[createatsalford]

Take a sneak peek at the work created by our talented students ahead of this year's Degree Show. The show features pieces by students on our Visual Art, Graphic Design, Photography, Fashion Image Making and Styling, and Interior Design courses. The preview starts at 17:30 tonight at Allerton Studios and the show continues until Friday 17 June. http://ow.ly/uObl3014S1k

[createatsalford]

After initially training as a lawyer, University of Salford student Sarah Boulter is now completing an MA in Contemporary Art. Ahead of exhibiting work in this year’s Degree Show, she tells us more about her practice and inspirations.

What’s your main area of practice and what ideas do you express through your work? My main area of practice is print, more specifically screen printing and etching. My recent work has explored the idea of confession and its role in manipulating and constructing identity, both through people’s compulsive spilling on social media and through things like private diary writing. My interest in this theme stems from my time working as a lawyer, when I wrote wills and had to gain trust and intimate personal details from clients very quickly. One piece that reflects this is a confession booth I built for the students in the Allerton Building. I subsequently displayed a poster liberating all their secrets.

How do you develop ideas for your work? I try to read widely, watch movies, go to exhibitions, travel, talk to people and try things out. I also write a lot as that helps me build on ideas and generate new thoughts, and I take notes of things I see or overhear that amuse me.

What are you presenting at this year’s degree show? I’ll be presenting a series of etchings titled, ‘…and other lies I’ve told’. This is a continuation of my confessional theme and is more personal than previous work in that each piece features a piece of text - a quotation of mine - against an image suggesting that the statement is untrue. Hopefully, the work is humorous. I enjoy the contrast between etchings, which are often considered as serious and traditional medium, with playful, irreverent imagery and text.

How has studying at Salford helped you to develop your practice? Having come from a non-art background (first studying Chinese language and then working in law), Salford has enabled my practice to develop immeasurably. I have found the guidance from tutors and workshop technicians greatly encouraging and their academic and practical knowledge has been a huge resource for me.

What are your plans after graduating?  After I graduate, I plan to exhibit more of my work. So far, I have shown work at the Territorial Anxiety MA show at The Grosvenor Gallery and in the Hidden Identities exhibition at The Old Fire Station in Salford. The Old Fire Station is also the venue for the current Haworth Life Drawing group exhibition, which includes some of my work. A piece of mine was featured in Paper Gallery’s stall at this year’s Hepworth Print Fair. And I’ll be part of a further exhibition was planned as a result of Create Salford’s recent drawing symposium at Artwork.

You can see Sarah’s work, alongside pieces from our Visual Arts, Graphic Design, Fashion Image Making and Styling, Interior Design and Photography students, at our Degree Show in Allerton Studios from Thursday 9 (preview) to – Friday 17 June. To find out more about our BA and MA courses in Visual Art, follow this link to our Course Finder.

[createatsalford]

Hazel Clegg graduated from the University of Salford in 2015 with a BA (Hons) in Visual Art. While studying at Salford, was awarded both the Haworth Life Drawing Prize and the Graduate Scholarship Scheme. She is showing her work as part of the 2016 Degree Show, which runs from Thursday 9 (preview) - Friday 17 June at Allerton Studios. 

In 2016 you were one of a number of students who received a place on the 2015 Graduate Scholarship Scheme. How has this helped you to develop your practice? At the very end of my second year I began to explore the medium of paint. I had painted previously but never thought about undertaking it as a serious practice. By the time my final semester finished I had produced some of my best pieces of work, and this led me to further explore this medium. The Graduate Scholarship Scheme gave me access to a huge studio at ArtWork Atelier, and along with it came Ian and Jai, my two mentors on the scheme. The whole scheme enabled me to develop my work by offering invaluable time, space and freedom to explore painting in whichever way I wished, with no deadlines to adhere to. The work I have produced over the past 9 months has been extremely varied, and I have made a gradual move from figurative pieces to portraiture. I also made the tough decision to move on from acrylics to ‘scary’ oil paints – trust me, the first attempt didn’t go well! What are you presenting at this year’s degree show? I’m currently working on a large scale portraiture piece. It actually has two sides to it. I made the first into a self-portrait, but after working on it so much I got angry with it. Eventually I flipped the entire thing and nailed it back to the wall, and now I’m working on a portrait of a family member who I’ve had quite a turbulent relationship with. It’s funny really, because this person and I are so alike yet so different, and here we are, back-to-back and almost fused together. How has studying at Salford helped you to improve as an artist? I had one of the most passionate and inspirational tutors, who really pushed me to do my best. When I began painting in my second year I was really unsure of myself, but he encouraged me to continue. He inspired me to turn up at 8.30 every morning and paint until gone 18:00 – Allerton Studios soon became something of a second home. Before I came to Salford I never called myself an artist, but when I arrived, he told us not to fear this and I have introduced myself as an artist ever since. Preparing for our second year exhibition - and now for the Degree Show - has given me a real insight into an artist’s life. It’s not just about the art, it’s also about the dirty, messy, hard work that goes into producing shows and events, plus the knowledge behind the art and the business side of things - although I’m yet to experience that. What’s inspiring you to make art now? The same thing that has always inspired me to make art – life. The human condition truly fascinates me and I often find myself questioning why we exist, our relationships, and our links to the people around us. I’m also exploring issues around mental health through the things I enjoy painting the most - the human figure and face. I also have plans for a large-scale portrait of my partner with a bit of a twist. It’s maybe one that my mother-in-law won’t like! But it’s all visual commentary on the human condition. Do you have any future plans to exhibit work? I’m hoping to have a solo or partnered show at ArtWork Atelier’s exhibition space before the end of the year, and I’ll be returning to Salford in September to enroll on the MA in Contemporary Fine Art – you can’t keep me away! You can see more of Hazel’s work at our 2016 Degree Show, which takes place at Allerton Studios from Thursday 9 (preview) to Friday 17 June. To find out more about our BA and MA courses in Visual Art, follow this link to our Course Finder.   

[createatsalford]

Take a look back at this week’s Albert the Tank Tram presentation at Create Salford - an interdisciplinary project featuring work by our Graphic Design, Performance and Engineering students. The project is centred around the Tank Tram, a 1916 fundraising stunt to raise money for the production of tanks for use in the First World War. The stunt is being revived and the Tank Tram will travel the region as a focal point for the current debate around war and technology. To find out more, visit the Tank Tram project’s website.

[createatsalford]

Yesterday, Salford researchers Tim Isherwood and John Powell Jones launched Print Made, an exhibition of printmaking at Salford’s Islington Mill. You can see their work until Thursday 9 June, as part of Create Salford.

[createatsalford]

See work by Tim Isherwood and John Powell Jones at Print Made, an exhibition of printmaking at Islington Mill. The exhibition opens tonight from 17:00 - 21:00 and continues for one week, as part of Create Salford. (Image by Tim Isherwood)

[createatsalford]

Congratulations to all of the fantastic winners at last week's Journalism Awards. Take a look back at the event.

[createatsalford]

Here are some highlights from The Doors are Open, an evening of comedy and physical theatre presented by our Performance students. Like what you see? You can catch another instalment tonight at MediaCityUK.

[createatsalford]

Earlier this week our final year Fashion students showcased their collections in our Runway Show. Here’s a selection of their work. Top: Stacey Wright Bottom left: Toni Martin Bottom right: Anum Raul

[createatsalford]

Take a look backstage as our models prepared to showcase the work of our final year Fashion students at Create Salford’s Runway Show. 

[createatsalford]

This week at Create Salford, our students presented Movement Stillness, a scratch performance based around everyday objects and tasks. Take a look back at the event. 

[createatsalford]

After the Comedy Showcase at Create Festival, we caught up with final year student Cameron Rudland, who told us more about studying Comedy Writing and Performance at Salford. 

[createatsalford]

Karin Human is a third-year BA Fashion student at the University of Salford whose work was recently shown at Manchester Art Gallery’s Fashion & Freedom exhibition, alongside pieces by Vivienne Westwood. We spoke to her ahead of the final year Fashion Show to find out about her work and inspirations.

What influenced your decision to study Fashion at Salford and how have you found the experience? I chose Salford as they are known for their links with industry. The experience has been exciting and I've loved my time at Salford thus far. 

What are you presenting at this year’s degree show? My collection is called ‘The Road Less Travelled’ and it’s inspired by my life and upbringing in South Africa. This collection is a full spectrum of memories and adventures, from the mountain ranges, to the beautiful and abundant fauna and flora that surrounded me. I took inspiration from the elements that make me happy. What materials do you predominantly work with and in what areas have you been able to develop skills while at Salford? I love using a variety of materials, but recently I've been pulled towards cotton organdy. Not only is it a fantastic base to create and sculpt with but it also allows the wearer to feel free. Skills-wise I've developed a love of applied design, from embroidery to hand painted materials and of course print. How did you get involved with the Fashion & Freedom exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery? A brief on the theme of 'restriction and release' was given to us by our head of our department as part of a module designed to connect us with industry. After several weeks of work a body of flatwork was reviewed and five students, including myself, were chosen to make and showcase our designs. What are your future career plans? The dream is to design so I'm working hard to be able to go into industry and work for a wonderful brand I love. Karin will be presenting work at the final year Fashion Show at Hotel Football, as part of Create Festival. The Fashion & Freedom exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery runs until 27th November 2016. You can find out more about our BA in Fashion Design here.

[createatsalford]

We hosted a workshop and symposium last week to encourage artists to critically debate drawing practice. Here’s a selection of the work produced.

[createatsalford]

Here’s another sneak peek of our Fashion students’ work ahead of the Runway Show at Hotel Football tomorrow. Find out more here.