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  • Student showcase kicks off Jubilee weekend as summer degree shows return to Brighton

Student showcase kicks off Jubilee weekend as summer degree shows return to Brighton

Graduates at the University of Brighton will present their first in-person shows for three years after the pandemic forced them online in 2020 and 2021.

19 May 2022

The return of the university’s Summer Shows – the south-east’s largest exhibition of fine art, design, fashion, film and architecture, which regularly attracted over 10,000 visitors before the pandemic – will feature work by hundreds of students graduating from 20 different degree courses.

Members of the public will be able to experience striking and thought-provoking work from final year students studying subjects as diverse as painting, graphic design, illustration, fashion photography, sound art and sculpture and more. There will be workwear fashion inspired by Jackson Pollock, digital music telling the story of an alien landed on Earth, and paintings made using seaweed and sunlight.

Graduate Shows 2022 logo

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 ,

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 , "Substation" by Max Southern, Photography

Shows will run from late May through to July at venues across the university’s City and Moulsecoomb campuses, kicking off with a catwalk show from fashion students at Elm House on 27 May which will see 22 graduates showcasing their couture creations. The main BA graduate show opens to the public at the start of the extended Jubilee bank holiday weekend on 2 June and runs until 12 June at the university’s Grand Parade and Edward Street buildings. The Architecture and Design End of Year Show is at Mithras House from 17-19 June, with the MA shows featuring the work of postgraduate students opening on 9 July at Grand Parade.

A key theme running through all the shows is sustainability, with students utilising a range of environmentally conscious materials and processes to bring their work to life and make statements about the importance of taking care of our planet – and ourselves.

Professor Debra Humphris, Vice-Chancellor of University of Brighton, said: “Our Summer Shows are a unique showcase for emerging talent, providing a springboard for this year's graduating students to follow the career success of so many others from the University of Brighton.

“After two years away, I’m absolutely delighted that our Summer Shows are returning to Brighton. As well as being one of the most exciting events in the university’s calendar, the shows are a major cultural fixture for the city attracting visitors from all over the world.

“More than anything, I’m delighted for our graduating students who have shown such resilience and determination over the last two years. I can’t wait to join them, their friends and their families – and hopefully many thousands of visitors – to celebrate and enjoy the results of their hard work, passion and creativity.”

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Matthew Dardart, Fine Art Sculpture

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Matthew Dardart, Fine Art Sculpture

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Megan Hack, Fine Art

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Megan Hack, Fine Art

Megan Hack is one 2022 graduate tapping into the key theme of sustainability running through the work of many others this year. Megan's paintings, photographs and weavings draw on an array of distinctive materials sourced from nature, including seaweed, sunlight trails, seawater, and mycelium, as well as foraged plant dyes and earth pigments.

Megan said: “I decided on Fine Art Painting after I visited the studios and met past students who were so lovely and supportive - I really felt like I would do well to study in that environment. Moving to Brighton has been an invaluable experience by placing me in a hub of creative people as well as the sea, the South Downs and the coastline as a constant inspiration.... I have also worked with local allotments, youth groups and community centres, running workshops on ecological art.”

From the fashion degrees, 2022 graduate Lily Jane Wood said: “I chose Fashion Design with Business Studies at Brighton because the graduate collections looked intimidatingly strong! And for the record of Fashion Design graduates going straight into the industry after graduation. My final collection is focused on artists’ clothing, in particular Joseph Beuys, Jackson Pollock and Francis Bacon.... The course has been intense - however, every project and deadline has only made me see how much this is what I want to do, and I wouldn’t change a thing.” 

Photography BA graduate Max Southern, meanwhile, is currently shortlisted for the 2022 Palm Photo Prize, as well as having work on show at 10-14 Gallery in London. He said: “Brighton and the BA Photography course have provided me with a space to investigate and build on the body of my work... I received an exceptional level of feedback from tutors that will inform my thinking and approach to making photographs long after I graduate.”

Alumni from the across the range of subject areas covered in the Summer Show courses have gone on to huge success and major awards. They include John Moores Painting Prize winner Kathryn Maple (Fine Art Painting BA), £200,000 2021 British Fashion Council/Vogue sustainable fashion leader Bethany Williams (BA Fine Art Critical Practice) and current A-list fashion designer Tara Hakin (BA Fashion Design With Business Studies), plus recycled speakers creator Tom Meads (BA 3D Design and Craft).

For those unable to attend in person, the university is creating a comprehensive online exhibition site showcasing the work of every graduate, which will go live on 17 June. In the meantime, you can whet your appetite by looking back to the dazzling work from last year on the university's exhibitions website.

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Lily Jane Wood, Fashion with Business Studies

Image from the Graduate shows 2022 by Lily Jane Wood, Fashion with Business Studies

Exhibition details: 2022 shows

BA Graduate Show
When: 2–12 June 2022
Where: 58–67 Grand Parade, Grand Parade, Brighton BN2 0JY and 154-155 Edward Street, Brighton BN2 0JG

Architecture and Design End of Year Show
When: 17-19 June 2022
Where: Mithras House, Lewes Road, Brighton BN2 4AT

MA Show
When: from 9 July 2022
Where: 58–67 Grand Parade, Brighton BN2 0JY

Instagram: @brightonsummershows

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