The next generation of creative talent: University of Northampton opens its doors for the Degree Show

Soon-to-be graduates from the Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology at the University of Northampton will be showcasing their final year’s work when they open their studio doors to the public at this year’s Degree Show.

Opening on Saturday 10 June, the exhibition celebrates the achievements and creativity of the third year students and will feature work from a wide range of course, including Product Design, Fine Art, Illustration, Interior Design, Fashion, Photography and Popular Music.

The show will run until Friday 16 June and gives the public the opportunity to view students’ work which will be displayed around the University’s Avenue Campus.

Interior Design student Antonia Lowe’s award winning classroom game ‘Culture Tower’ is one example of the work that will be on display during the week. Her project aims to confront the issues of cultural misunderstanding that leads to social conflict and resulted in her winning an RSA Student Design Award and a prize of £2,000.

Emily Ford, an Illustration student, has researched and explored the constant progression of feminism and its influences. She will be presenting her project entitled ‘Femininity’ which looks at gender roles as a performance, and the idea of closet femininity.

Matthew Barnard, Carly Ayre and Elliot Lee are all Graphic Communication students, who will be showcasing their interpretations of a modern book cover for both ‘In Cold Blood’ by Truman Capote and ‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole aged 13 ¾’ by Sue Townsend. All three students were shortlisted for the Penguin Random House Student Design Award.

Also being featured is a campaign project that Elliott Lee worked on with fellow Graphic Communication student Victor Asandi that aims to sensitively engage and inform young Muslim women about the consequences of traveling to Syria.

The project was set by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, Prevent UK and YCN (You Can Now) and Elliot and Victor won first place, which has resulted in them being offered internships at a top advertising agency. The campaign is also being rolled out to every police station in the UK.

Fashion students will be flying the flag for their home countries as they will be displaying their international-inspired collections that will also be part of the University’s catwalk show at this year’s Graduate Fashion Week.

Polish-born Aleksandra Kukula took inspiration from the traditional folk culture from her home country for her vibrant print designs, while similarly Elena Hristova created her collection based on her Bulgarian heritage. Venuka Wickramaarachchi created his pieces using inspiration from the dance culture in his home country of Sri Lanka and Halima Begum was influenced by her parents’ home country of Bangladesh and in particular the Liberation War in the early 1970s.

John Sinclair, Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology, commented: “As is always the case, our students have worked incredibly hard to generate some terrific examples of art and design practice and it will be fantastic to see it on public display.

“The Degree Show will be full of clever ideas with media, materials and subject matter with high production values throughout and Faculty staff are very proud of their students’ achievements. It has been another great year!”

The Degree Show will be open from Saturday 10 to Friday 16 June from 10am to 4pm at the University of Northampton’s Avenue Campus, St George’s Avenue, NN2 6JD.

Photos: Work from Emily Ford, Illustration, Aleksandra Kukula, Fashion, and Carly Ayre, Graphic Communication