Be inspired by students' creativity
Product Design graduate James Benson - creator of BottleBuoy, a low-cost floatation device for young children that utilises three reclaimed soft drinks bottles
Wed, 10 Jun 2015 09:27:00 BST
The creative abilities and skills of University of Huddersfield graduates are being showcased in a new multi-media festival, entitled Inspired, which launches in the town on Saturday, June 13.
Covering all 25 courses offered by the School of Art, Design and Architecture, the event will take place over two weeks and includes many public events, lectures, exhibitions and fashion shows.
The aim, says the Dean of the School, Professor Mike Kagioglou, is to integrate the wider Huddersfield population with the university’s creative community.
End of year fashion shows and art and design exhibitions have long been a part of the university’s calendar but for the first time every course has been given a vehicle to demonstrate the work of the students.
Prof Kagioglou, who joined the university 18 months ago, explained: “Last year when I saw the students’ work I was amazed by the quality. In order to do justice to the work of the students and staff it was decided to provide a mechanism by which we could expand the end of year shows to include other activities that are at the heart of what we do.”
And so the Inspired. Huddersfield festival will also feature, for example, a public debate on the Freedom of Speech in Art; an industry day for student placement companies, and the launch of a Centre for Urban Design, Architecture and Sustainability.
At the core of the festival activities is the message that creativity in all its forms is an essential component for so many industries and enterprises.
“This is a showcase for the university,” said Prof Kagioglou, “and shows how much art is integrated within the other disciplines. The professions of the future, that don’t exist at the moment, are likely to come from the creative sector.”
Pantheon is a series of images that, by covering the face of a beauty portrait, offer an otherwordly figure. By Iain Booth, Photography BA(Hons).
The School of Art, Design and Architecture has a total of around 2,500 students, 600 of whom are graduating this summer.
Courses cover everything from Advertising Design and Animation to Textiles and Transport Design.
It has the only university photography course accredited by the British Institute of Professional Photographers, a fashion department that has accreditation from the Creative Skillset headed by designer Betty Jackson, and close links with both industry and arts organisations such as the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
As many as 95% of the school’s graduates can expect to find work within six months of graduating, which is higher than the university average overall, and 65% go into the creative industries.
“We have a lot to be proud of,” says Prof Kagioglou, whose career began in engineering and product design but migrated towards buildings and architecture.
“And now the Government wants to create a Northern powerhouse we want to see a renaissance of the creative industries, with Huddersfield and the university at the heart of it.”
A programme of events can be found on the university website www.hud.ac.uk/inspired-huddersfield/ or picked up from the Harold Wilson building on campus.
Entry to all events, except the fashion and costume shows, is free.
Find the original artcile on the Huddersfield Examiner website
