Our Journal
Check out the latest news, events and opportunities from our college community and industry network.
The world needs creatives now more than ever
Plymouth College of Art has teamed up with Crowdfunder to award creative and digital projects with a share of £15,000 match funding.
Local students are set to take the next steps of their entrepreneurial journey with IGNITE’s free Business Programme
From Royal Marine Commando to hot glass artist - Craft & Material Practices student Nathan Soper
Featured Student
Meet Nathan Soper, first year on BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices whose experiences in the military brought him to the hot glass workshops
Third year BA (Hons) Fine Art student Stella Olivier visited The Box's Another Crossing exhibition to explore the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower
Meet the Academics - Rachel Darbourne
Featured Staff
Rachel Darbourne teaches across our MA Jewellery and BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices programme. We asked her about her own creative practice, living in Plymouth and how she discovered her fascination for materials.
Despite our Summer Shows just around the corner, that’s not the only thing that’s happening in Plymouth this month. Check out our selection of events for May.
In partnership with Green Minds, craft students designed and installed sculptural installations inspired by the natural environment of Poole Farm
David McKee, author and illustrator of Elmer the Patchwork Elephant and Mr Benn, passed away after a short illness.
Green Minds x The Village Hub Commission Open Call
Employability
We’ve partnered with Green Minds, Plymouth City Council and The Village Hub to offer £3000 of artist commissions exclusively for Plymouth College of Art students.
Meet the Academics - Tim Gundry
Featured Staff
Meet Tim, our Senior Lecturer & Subject Leader for BA (Hons) Commercial Photography. We had the chance to ask him some questions about his personal and professional practice and find out what advice he had for those starting out in photography.
Looe Royal British Legion & Plymouth College of Art students remember the Falklands War
Employability
Students create sand drawing on East Looe Beach to commemorate the people of Looe who took part in the conflict
Explore the contemporary role of creativity and making in education
Exploring skate culture & photography with Size? and House of Vans
Awards & Industry
BA (Hons) Fashion Communication student Lucy Timbrell reflects on her cohort's experience working on a brief for Size? and House of Vans, styling and photographing in response to skate culture.
Exploring Plymouth’s fashion past and future, students have responded with zines, costumes and garments
Former Navy Senior Non-Commissioned Officer photographs the Armed Forces Para-Snowsport Team
Awards & Industry
After medical discharge from the Royal Navy, this veteran is building a new life as a photographer
Networking with emerging creatives & Plymouth businesses
Awards & Industry
Creative arts students and graduates in the city of Plymouth have taken the opportunity to network with business leaders as part of Ignite
Accommodation guaranteed for all first year students
Advice & Support
We work with student accommodation providers Host to bring you a wide range of choices for all budgets, so that you can find a place to live that is a perfect fit - and we guarantee that every first year student will get a place.
BA (Hons) Painting, Drawing & Printmaking student Karmin O’Brien explores the possibility of a digital third gaze during our Paris College of Art life drawing collaboration event.
UK Film & TV industry sees once-in-a-generation growth
Awards & Industry
The UK film and TV industry is booming, with productions reaching an ever-increasing global audience and achieving commercial and critical success. The UK is becoming a prime destination for content creators worldwide.
Plymouth College of Art presents Boris Karloff: The Many Faces of a Film Icon - an online symposium
Events
Hosted online on Friday 1 April 2022, you are invited on a Karlovian odyssey to explore the life and career of one of the most enduring figures of screen culture
In between stuffing your face full of Easter chocolate or enjoying the Spring weather, check out some of the great events happening around Plymouth in April.
Plymouth-based artist Molly Erin McCarthy responds to ‘Yonaoshi’ with series of AR Instagram filters
Pre-Degree students have embarked upon an exciting project to support biodiversity initiatives as part of the Green Minds initiative, working at Poole Farm in Leigham, the gateway to Derriford Community Park and a pocket of accessible green space in Plymouth.
Winners include current Students' Union President Harriet Moore and alumni from the Fashion Communication and Graphic Communication degrees
Plymouth College of Art is playing host to international glass blowing symposium, Melting Pot, taking place on March 18 and 19 2022, as part of the UK's national celebrations for the United Nations-designated International Year of Glass.
Fab Lab Plymouth supports award-winning designer Jess Strain
We caught up with MA Ceramics graduate Mandy Biscoe to hear about the ancient craft of seed saving, and how her multi-disciplinary arts practice engages communities with the natural world.
Matt Holmes: Finding beauty in imperfection
Featured Staff
Designer, maker and researcher Matt Holmes recently joined Plymouth College of Art as a Technical Demonstrator in Fab Lab Plymouth. We sat down with Matt to find out more about his creative practice, and why he believes that the Fab Lab is for everyone, no matter what discipline your practice originates in.
What to bring with you for an Applicant Evening
Advice & Support
Here's all the information you need to be ready for one of our Applicant Evenings
With an active embrace of sustainability practices, the specialist art school was shortlisted alongside leading international organisations including Amnesty International and Sony.
What is the Students' Union Executive Committee?
Students' Union
We thought it was about time we introduced the Students' Union Executive Committee, a team of students, elected by the student body, to represent the student voice.
Innovative brewery collaborates with Plymouth College of Art team to capture and reuse CO2
Sustainability
As part of the Environmental Futures and Big Data Impact Lab project, Barnaby's Brewhouse are working with Plymouth College of Art and Fab Lab Plymouth on a system to reduce and reuse CO2 emissions from their beer production facilities.
Final-year BA (Hons) Photography student Daniel Dayment talks about his work documenting alternative ways of living and his decision to live in a renovated Citroen Van during his studies.
South West Showcase artist Huhtamaki Wab’s solo show opens on 17 March 2022 and runs until 11 June 2022
Supporting young artists with Martha Pengelly
Featured Student
19-year-old BA (Hons) Illustration student Martha Pengelly, after attending Young Arts clubs at Plymouth College of Art from the age of four, has come full circle and is now supporting Young Arts students as part of her role as a Student Ambassador, alongside her degree.
March is already looking like a busy month in Plymouth, so here's some of the highlights to put in your diary.
How to stay motivated at university
Advice & Support
BA (Hons) Fashion Communication student Lucy Timbrell gives her top tips on staying motivated at uni and how looking at long-term goals can help knock down creative walls.
BA (Hons) Fine Art student Ashanti Hare tells us how a voluntary opportunity at KARST has led to a year-long placement, learning about curation and installation.
Plymouth College of Art joins the British Fashion Council’s prestigious Colleges Council
Awards & Industry
BA (Hons) Fashion Design joins a network of educational institutions across the UK supporting each other in arts and fashion education
Laura Quinn, graduate from Plymouth College of Art will be showing her brand new body of work 'Tacit Bodies' at this year's Craft Council art fair, Collect.
Extended Diploma Graduate Oliver Brooks, tells us about working from his home in Devon with international design agency Pentagram
Former Plymouth College of Art Pre-Degree student, from Aveton Gifford, interns with Pentagram
Archaeological artefacts recovered from shipwrecks in Plymouth Sound reveal Plymouth’s links to empire, slavery and indenture
BA (Hons) Illustration lecturer Bridgette Ashton explores Cornish mining in touring exhibition
Events
Artist and lecturer on BA (Hons) Illustration, Bridgette Ashton will be showing her new work, ‘ARTIFICIALIA: Fake Minerals & Fancy Plinths’ across Cornwall as a touring exhibition.
Natural dye expert Jane Deane visited Textiles students at Plymouth College of Art to deliver a masterclass in getting vibrant colours from simple, natural products.
Psychedelic musician Kavus Torabi talks Sound Arts
Awards & Industry
Russell Cleave, Technical Demonstrator for BA (Hons) Sound Arts, sat down with psychedelic musician Kavus Torabi to find out more about his career and experiences, as well as what he thinks of the Sound Arts course.
Despite February being the shortest month of the year, Plymouth is full of fun things to do!
Meet the Academics: Cathryn Bishop
Featured Staff
We met up with Cathryn Bishop, Subject Leader of BA (Hons) Interior Design & Styling to find out more about her personal practice, the importance of creativity and how these factors both contribute to her teaching.
19-year-old Sam Johnson graduated from our Pre-Degree campus in Summer 2021 ready to dive straight into a job with Braincup Media, a video production and social media company based in West London. We catch up with him to hear all about it.
We sat down with final year BA (Hons) Illustration student Ellie to discuss how she progressed from studying with Plymouth College of Art at Pre-Degree to university level and how Freshers Week helped her to make lifelong friends.
We chat to BA (Hons) Illustration graduate Max Girdler-Heald, whose illustration was chosen as part of Plymouth College of Art's current advertising campaign.
It's 2022, so let's start the year as we mean to go on with the top things to do and see in Plymouth during January.
Take part in our first ever BA (Hons) Sound Arts Competition, and win a brand new Playtronica Touch Activated Midi Controller for your school or college!
With specialisms that include print, web and interactive motion design, Frédérique has worked on projects in the Louvre, France's National Centre of Immigration History and across the UK and Europe.
What’s in the box? – Plymouth College of Art announces 72-Hour Film Challenge winner
Awards & Industry
Students aged 15 to 19 from across the country took part in the 72-Hour Film Challenge, with the winning film 'The Cure' submitted by Queen Mary's College in Basingstoke
Plymouth College of Art appoints artist, inventor and multidisciplinary researcher Thomas Duggan
Featured Staff
With specialisms that include biotechnology and advanced robotic fabrication, Thomas has exhibited at the V&A, Tate and MoMA.
Staff at Plymouth College of Art make £1325 contribution to Children's Hospice South West
Featured Staff
Staff, students and contractors for the college have raised funds for the charity's Christmas appeal
DJ and producer Karistocat talks Sound Arts
Awards & Industry
Russell Cleave, Technical Demonstrator for BA (Hons) Sound Arts, sat down with Karistocat to find out more about her career and influences, as well as why she'd study Sound Arts.
'Bodies in Space' is a group exhibition of figurative painting and drawing at MIRROR, Plymouth College of Art, running until 26 February 2022