Launchgrad News, Events & Opps w/c 20th July 2020
July 20, 2020
Hello!
Last week, our class of 2020 would have been celebrating in the Cathedral and throwing their caps in the air – We hope all who have completed their studies this year have been able to mark the occasion and recognize their achievements in their own way during this topsy-turvy year! The College is currently planning the rescheduled Graduation ceremony and will be in touch with details as soon as we can.
In the meantime, we will be keeping you inspired and updated with events and opportunities to keep you going over this summer like no other and into the future. See below for this week’s selection and Launchgrad news…
News
Launchgrad upgrade!
We’ve had a bit of a facelift and are very excited to present our new Launchgrad website! It’s now part of an entire site dedicated to graduates of Hereford College of Arts. Most importantly, we will be posting our monthly blogs and opportunities content here from now on, whilst slowing phasing out our old site and the Twitter page. We’ll still be on social media so go follow us on Instagram for posts about grad life and opportunities!
Also, HCA Launchgrad now has an easy email address if you wish to contact with us (Sarah-Jane Crowson and Lily Morris) – get in touch using hcalaunchgrad@hca.ac.uk
Events
Picasso and Paper at The Royal Academy
Until Sunday 2 August
Last chance to see ‘Picasso and Paper’ – A major exhibition at the Royal Academy spanning the artist’s 80-year career and featuring 300 works, including studies for ‘Guernica’ and a 4.8-metre-wide collage. Although tickets have sold out, you can view the exhibition virtually.
Grain – Decolonising the Gaze
Thursday 10 September 18.00 – 20.00
£3.00 (plus booking fee)
This online event follows on from GRAIN and The New Art Gallery Walsall’s collaboration on the exhibition ‘Too Rich A Soil’ which opened on the 15th November 2019 and closed early due to lockdown. The exhibition presented new work that dealt with themes of identity and representation, from three British artists’ of South Asian descent, Arpita Shah, Maryam Wahid and Nilupa Yasmin. This session, originally intended to be a face to face symposium has been rescheduled as an online event. Each artist will have the opportunity to share a selection of their practice and contribute to crucial conversations about the politics of representation.
MAG Unlocked: Signs and Symbols in Art
Saturday 1 August 16:00 – 17:00
Delve into the artwork at Manchester Art Gallery even while the doors are closed. Join a session looking at the signs and symbols in art that help us to understand what the artist wants to tell us. Manchester Art Gallery has an amazing team of volunteer guides who deliver tours at the gallery usually four times a week. While we can’t gather people together physically for tours at this time, the team will be delivering online sessions twice a month using Zoom.
Meet the Maker: Visibility vs Invisibility on Social Media
Wednesday 22 July 13:00 – 14:00
A series of free online discussions to support artists and makers in their business development needs. These twice monthly discussions will give makers the chance to chat to Crafts Council and key industry experts about their business concerns.
Themes will focus around funding, social media, legal advice and templates, e-commerce and website optimization. This talk will help you gain confidence in utilising social media to promote your own practice and building a supportive online network.
The guest speaker is researcher and author Dr Karen Patel, lead of the Craft Expertise project, who will be in conversation with Arati Devasher, designer-maker. They will be discussing navigating the online world vital to self-promotion of individual maker businesses. The discussion will consider pertinent questions including how do you create a safe online space as a female maker of colour? What steps can you take in building a solid and supportive network?
Opportunities
HCA Fresher’s Branding
Deadline: Friday 28 August, 5pm
We’re looking for someone to create a Logo for Freshers 2020 and a template to use for posters and social media usage! Entries must be clear and cohesive, designed within the HCA branding specifications that represents the fun to be had during Fresher’s week. Your audience will be new students coming to join us this September and will be seen by all those participating. To enter, email your entry to studentunion@hca.ac.uk – The lucky winner you will see their logo and posters advertising Fresher’s week and win a free paid for NUS card and £15 voucher for the student bar.
Email Kath Ayres for full details and guidelines.
The Guardian: DIY Face Masks
Shoppers in England will have to wear facemasks from 24 July. Have you made your own? The Guardian wants to hear from you if you have!
Share your views and photos here
Green Man T Shirt Lockdown Competition
Deadline: Wednesday 22 July
Fancy having your design featured on a special lockdown fundraiser T-shirt, plus a pair of GM21 weekend tickets for the talented winner?
The design should feature the Green Man effigy but this year perhaps he’s social distanced, isolating in his own bubble, streaming from the sofa, etc! Send your design to info@greenman.net by 22nd July. Please have ‘GM20 T-Shirt Competition’ as the subject line of the email. Designs should be one colour only and should also be available as a vector file (illustrator – ai file) or layered PSD.
Inspiring Views Project – Surrey Hills
Deadline: Sunday 26 July
Surrey Hills Arts (a partnership between Surrey Arts, SCC and Surrey Hills AONB) are commissioning a series of Inspiring Views projects along the North Downs Way. These projects include view restoration, conservation work and site specific artworks that incorporate an opportunity for rest. The artworks will highlight the inspiring views, provide a reason to visit, pause and appreciate each specific location while encouraging interaction from visitors. This commission is for Denbies Hillside overlooking the vineyard, Dorking and the Surrey Hills. The artwork can be a shelter, sculpture or series of pieces but must have a seating element. Application is open to all, but applicants must demonstrate knowledge of the area and the ability to work on site as appropriate. The judging panel will be looking for a high level of craftsmanship, originality of ideas, sympathy with the environment and a willingness to engage with local people, press and tourism.
Ceramic Graduate Residency @ Clay Shed, Bristol
Deadline: Friday 4 September
Clay Shed has launched a Graduate Residency programme to commence in October 2020. They will provide a recent graduate with a full-time studio space and access to communal facilities at a heavily subsidised cost. The programme will run for 12 months and is designed to bridge the gap between university and developing an independent practice. The Clay Shed Graduate Residency is available to recent graduates from ceramic related undergraduate or postgraduate degrees. Applicants must reside in the UK and have graduated within the last two years.
New Emergence Art ‘Unity’ Award
Deadline: Monday 24 August
The New Emergence Art Unity Award is an open call for works that depict an idea of ‘unity’. We are particularly interested in works from LGBTQ+ and BAME artists, although this is NOT a requirement. Your interpretations of the word ‘unity’ can be as abstract or literal as you wish. New Emergence Art is a newly launched art platform intended to help showcase and support living artists around the world. We want to help under represented artists to gain exposure. The New Emergence Art: Unity Award offers a £250 cash prize and a permanent website feature in our online gallery. One runner up will also receive a £100 cash prize.
The Shire – First Friday
The Young Creatives Board was established in 2019 and is supported by Herefordshire’s a Great Place, a project delivered by Rural Media on behalf of the Herefordshire Cultural Partnership. YCB members decided to host a First Friday in Hereford to bring people together for art, music, spoken word and socialising. The theme of the online First Fridays is well-being and the project has brought the artists together to host live watch parties on YouTube and share the work of local artists who they commissioned earlier this year. If you’d like to get involved in future First Fridays, please email greatplace@ruralmedia.co.uk
If you are involved with a project or would like to share something for next week’s Launchgrad newsletter, please get in touch!