The University of Plymouth’s School of Art, Design and Architecture Graduate Show 2018 takes place from Saturday 9 June to Friday 15 June across three sites: Roland Levinsky Building (RLB) and Scott Building on the main city centre campus, and Mills Bakery in the Royal William Yard.
The Show presents the creative work of almost 500 students, and they are inviting the public to join them and celebrate the artistic talent in Plymouth and the region.
The graduate event will run alongside Synesthesia this year, a separate show focusing on the work of selected alumni from the School, held in the Peninsula Arts gallery from Saturday 9 June to Saturday 23 June.
With a showcase event also taking place, in which local schoolchildren will get an exclusive chance to see the work and engage with staff and students, the past, present and future of creativity at the University will be on display.
Head of School Professor Chris Bennewith said: “This will be a fantastic showcase of what goes on here, the talent that’s developed, but that people don’t really know about. We’d really like the city to engage with it, for the general public to come in and see what sort of amazing work is happening in the building. It will be a very accessible show.”
Part of the show’s aim is to boost employability for those about to graduate. The event benefits students by giving them exposure, and offering an opportunity to exhibit, discuss and sell their work as budding professional artists and practitioners.
The public gets a chance to discover and, if they want to, to buy new work, and businesses and employers are able to interact with potential new recruits.
Professor Bennewith added: “It’s a great way of showcasing our graduates to local businesses. We want to try to keep as much of the talent coming out of the School in the region as possible, and really give a boost to the creative industries sector locally and regionally. This is a good opportunity for employers to come and see what our graduates can offer, if they need new staff.
“The creative sector in Plymouth and the region is growing, and we’re a big part of helping develop that, working with RIO [Real Ideas Organisation] and the city council and Plymouth Culture.
“I think it could become very important for the region. Plymouth has the opportunity to establish a new vibrant economy for the region. There’s a real opportunity for that to be around the creative and cultural industries, because there’s a number of institutions producing creative graduates.
“From a talent pool perspective, if you’re looking at feeding those creative industries, we’re producing hundreds of potential employees each year. Businesses should not be wanting for talent.”
Members of the public are encouraged to attend the free events. Public viewing is from 10am-5pm Monday to Friday, and 11am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday.
Mills Bakery will host the work of BA (Hons) Fine Art students, while RLB will see those from BA (Hons) 3D Design, BA (Hons) Architecture, BA/BSc (Hons) Digital Art and Technology, BA (Hons) Fine Art, BA (Hons) Graphic Communication with Typography and BA (Hons) Illustration display their projects. BA (Hons) Media Arts and BA (Hons) Photography students will show their work in Scott Building.
Find out more about the Graduate Show and the alumni show, Synesthesia, on the University website at: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/whats-on/graduate-show-2018 and https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/whats-on/synesthesia-alumni-show.
