Welcome to the School of Arts Creative Showcase 2021
Welcome to our Creative Showcase 2021 which celebrates the innovation, imagination and creative courage of our graduating students across the spectrum of Arts disciplines. This virtual show acts as a vehicle to re-unite our dynamic creative community after a year largely characterized by separation and solitary endeavour. The showcase incorporates a variety of digital formats including a virtual walkthrough of 3D galleries, individual portfolio collections, moving animations and film. Across all of these platforms, you will see that exhibitors have produced a dazzling range of work demonstrating their growing confidence and creative vision as they are poised to enter their respective industries and associated fields of employment.
The Arts and Creative Industries have never had a more important role to play than they do today – and it is evident that our graduating students will bring new energy and insights to this arena. We know that creative productivity not only generates significant national and global wealth but, crucially, also supports individual wellbeing, social connectivity and community regeneration. It is great to see that our students are clearly well-positioned to make a positive difference to the lives of others by applying their distinctive knowledge and skills in real world contexts.
All of our courses are industry- or employer-facing and designed to provide students with the contextual, practical and transferable skills which are essential to thrive in the workplace. But our curriculum is hugely enriched by the input of practicing professionals who have continued to support our students by providing a fantastic range of masterclasses, seminars and portfolio critique sessions throughout the year. The quality and range of specialist sessions has been massively extended through virtual delivery technologies – and students have benefitted from the contemporary expertise of professionals from across the UK and beyond. Creative Industries partners have also contributed to the Creative Show by awarding graduate prizes, placements and internships – and we would like to extend our thanks to these individuals and organisations for their continued generosity in sharing their time and specialist know-how.
But most importantly, a huge WELL DONE to our students!! I hope that you all enjoy successful futures in your chosen careers and that you go on to innovate and extend your personal horizons through a lifelong commitment to curious thinking and creative doing!
Sam Johnson
Head of Bolton School of Arts
Studying animation and illustration with the University of Bolton’s School of the Arts allows you to be guided to develop your own unique visual voice and externalise internal visions through a variety of methods and techniques. This can be achieved through collaboration with a broad range of students and staff with diverse fields of interests, hands-on knowledge of various process methods and fields of expression.
Amongst the work produced by our students are experimental works in print and film, sequential art, editorial illustration, character animation, visual poetry, concept art, model-making, collage, digital image-making and bookmaking (to name a few).
Nurture your creative talents and pursue a rewarding career with the dynamic art and design with foundation degree course.
Our experienced Art and Design staff will help you explore and develop your creative potential before you choose to specialise in one or two disciplines from fine art, photography, graphic design, animation, illustration, fashion, textiles & surface design. With purpose-built facilities, our exceptional learning environment supports your development as a multi-skilled practitioner and offers you a distinctive and unique combination of specialisms and modules.
Find your literary voice and strengthen your bond with literature with our English and Creative Writing degree courses!
Our English and Creative Writing courses within the Bolton School of the Arts both rank number one for student satisfaction in the North West as per The Complete University Guide 2020 for the fourth year in a row. Moreover, our English and Creative Writing department is ranked second in the UK by The Guardian University Guide 2020. Our courses support you to creatively appreciate the great works of literature and contemporary writing while also helping you discover your literary potential.
Do you think you’ve got what it takes to make it in the exciting world of fashion design? Then our BA (Hons) Fashion degree course awaits your application!
Our Fashion course responds to contemporary practice in the fashion industry and is ideal if you wish to pursue a career within the wider scope of fashion. Individual self-expression is balanced with the need to understand commercial design and manufacturing processes, and an awareness of key critical issues affecting the industry.
Despite the challenges of the last year, the show has gone on! The Media department has powered through, with its dedicated staff of lecturers and technicians supporting and inspiring our students over zoom and many practical modules on campus as well.
Over the last year, we have seen our First-year students write diverse and gripping scripts, from gritty, real life dramas, to thrillers, to romances and splatter-punk. Our Second-year students have been remarkably resourceful and created a range of impactful and original films, from intimate relationship dramas to a no-holds-barred zombie movie about marriage (with wonderful make-up by Bolton Uni’s make up department).
Final year students have surpassed all our expectations – the artistic range and cultural diversity has been astonishing: from a beautiful and poetic film about overcoming the legacy of abuse, with dance sequences shot on Formby beach at sunset; a powerful relationship drama which, as the first British Eritrean drama in the UK, has hit 150K views on YouTube; a heart-wrenching and beautiful documentary shot inside a Syrian refugee camp about the experience of widows; a wonderfully off-beat comedy-thriller two-hander about two killers falling in love, and, lastly, a truly innovative film about the authentic experiences of an Eastern European factory worker in North West England made entirely using Machinima techniques.
Once again, the range, quality and bravery of our students’ work has blown us away. Necessity really has been the mother of invention!
Explore your creativity and experiment with drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, photography, installation, performance, digital and video art.
Our BA (Hons) Fine Art degree offers experienced staff who are also practising artists, dedicated studio space and well-equipped workshops, and opportunities to work alongside arts organisations and gain experience in the creative sector.
It’s a really exciting time to be studying graphic design. New and emerging technologies are having a monumental impact on the graphic design industry and the pace of innovation is taking everyone by surprise. This programme embraces change and positions itself as a provider of international design education because we believe in the fundamental universality of visual communication.
Graphic design is an art that uses typography, photography, illustration and animation for visual communication. If that sounds like an ideal career choice for you, then we would love to have you at the Bolton School of the Arts! The chance to undertake a diverse range of practical assignments and study the associated theory, makes our graphic design courses stand out.
Photography has the ability to reach a global audience presenting information concisely that can delight, educate, express a view or record a fragment of time. Our degree is designed to prepare photographers for professional roles in a wide range of specialist areas.
Ever dream of turning your passion for the camera into a fulfilling profession? The University of Bolton will help you develop all the creative and practical expertise needed to build a successful career in photography and photojournalism. The University of Bolton has been ranked number one for student satisfaction in Greater Manchester by The Complete University Guide 2020 for the third year in a row.
Our BA (Hons) Textiles + Surface Design course will teach you how to use your creative flair to design and produce for a range of fashion and textile outcomes. What works wonders for our fashion and textile students is the fact that Bolton as a town has a rich heritage within the textile manufacturing and innovation trade, giving you direct exposure to the best in the profession.
This multi-disciplinary degree explores surface design for fashion, interiors and contemporary craft and design products. Our students have an impressive history of success in national and international competitions, and our industry-experienced, dedicated team will work to nurture your skills in traditional practices and innovative digital processes, ready for a career in professional design.
To find out more information about our portfolio of dynamic undergraduate and postgraduate courses and how to apply please visit the University of Bolton website.
Bolton School of the Arts + Digital Technologies
making marks for over 160 years
