We caught up with six students from our January Reportage Photography course to find out more about their experiences on the course and the work they produced over the course’s duration.

What is your name and where are you from?

Carine Bea, from Brazil.

What made you choose this course?

I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and elevate my photography to a more challenging level. Learn to tell story in a clearer and more confident way.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

So it is hard to believe that each day in the UK over 8 million people go hungry.

As a Brazilian coming to live and work in the UK I found this astonishing. In one of the richest countries in the world people still can go without food.

This project is the results of ten weeks attempting to understand this plight, in a nation I believed was rich and plentiful with enough for all.

Even after these 10 weeks, of trying to shine light on this situation, the lives and stories touched continue remain something of an enigma. Hidden from me and the general public, forgotten, like a shameful secret in a land of plenty. So I just choose a empty space photo to show this shame.

© Carine Bea

What is your name and where are you from?

My name is Hussam Fakhry. Originally from Lebanon, I have lived and worked between Ghana and the UK for the past 25 years. I am now based more permanently in London and the owner and director of two companies.

What made you choose this course?

I wanted my pictures to tell a story, to have a personal point of view and aesthetic, to engage with fellow students, to discover new photographers and learn new techniques. The course exceeded my expectations.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

“Revealed by the Tide” is a journey of self-discovery on the banks of the river Thames. A quest for beauty, inspiration and meaning in a grey and silty landscape.

© Husam Fakhry

What is your name and where are you from?

Giulia Dini, I’m Italian but I’ve been living and working in London for two years.

What made you choose this course?

I wanted to learn how to tell stories through photographs and challenge myself with the creation of a photography project from A to Z.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

This series focuses on the intimate spaces of checked out hotel rooms and the impressions left behind.

Temporary visitors, stacked room by room, floor by floor, behind doors and numbers. All strangers in a strange place. For a brief moment the spaces tell a story, before the cleaners vacuum through, change the sheets, wipe down the shower and fluff the pillows.

Giulia’s project was published in CNN, The Spaces, Trivago Brazil, and Straf Hotel Blog.

© Giulia Dini

What is your name and where are you from?

Menka Sanghvi, from London.

What made you choose this course?

For me, photography is an invitation to slow down, look closer, and be curious. I run a mindfulness project supporting others to enjoy photography in this way too – it’s called Just Looking. I chose this course because I wanted to explore more deeply how we see stories, and make meaning, using photographs.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

My project explores the quiet, curated life of a silent meditation retreat. No phone, no internet, no conversation. In this solitude, awareness makes friends with objects, colours, textures, shadows, each one whispering its story.

© Menka Sanghvi

 What is your name and where are you from?

My name is Adèle Humphreys, I am a London based mother, writer and photographer born and raised in Brussels, Belgium. My interest in cameras began as a child when a close family friend and photographer, Daniel Langendries, showed me his collection of beautiful old cameras. My first camera was a pink Kodak 110 film camera. I have shot on 35mm, Polaroid, DSLR, iPhone (3 to X series including Hipstamatic & Instagram) and more recently medium format and a Sony A7 mirrorless system.

What made you choose this course?

I chose Reportage Photography at CSM to reinvigorate my story craft with photography. I had always wanted to pursue arts at CSM and always enjoyed photography. As a mum to a tiny one in the middle of reinventing herself, the 10 week evenings course was ideal and my fiancé bought it for me as a Christmas present. It was the best present.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

Mother & Child – The art of fucking up explores the definition of a ‘supermum’ in contrast to the reality where chaos is total. Inspired by my own emotional journey into motherhood and finding joy in an adventure that is personal, individual and undefinable. Using medium format film and a Holga 120N.

© Adèle Humphreys

What is your name and where are you from?

Alex McCarter, from Toronto, Canada.

What made you choose this course?

I work in ethnography and design. I hope to bring more visual practices into what I do.

Could you summarise your project in 50 words?

For my work ‘Things Fall Apart’ I constructed new high streets, buildings and interiors from the pieces of more than 20 former pubs or abandoned buildings in Stepney in East London. These constructions show the relationships between buildings and communities that when combined, are stronger together. The old buildings of Stepney now speak back.

© Alex McCarter

This 1 week intensive or 10 week evening course is open to students of all levels and suits photography enthusiasts, serious hobbyists, as well as bloggers, semi-professionals and young professionals wishing to improve their street photography skills. The next Reportage Photography course will take place in July 2018.

 

Feel inspired? Visit the Central Saint Martins Short Courses website for more information on all of our courses and book yours today! 

 

Last week short courses returned to the wonderful Affordable Art Fair with more amazing workshops and talks; find out who was there in our “Affordable Art Fair – Hampstead” article. Kim Scouller, who teaches upon the English Plus Fine Art (Summer) course, ran two workshops on Friday 11^th May, here Kim expands further on what visitors had the chance to learn and what she thinks about the AFF.

Kim Scouller / Workshop I: Making Your Mark

The Affordable Art Fair is a great opportunity to see so many different artworks under one roof. For some it’s a chance to buy work or start their art collection, for others it’s simply an opportunity to be inspired by different artists.

Affordable Art Fair, Creative Studio

Workshop I: Making Your Mark

The idea behind this workshop was to help people really engage with drawing in a fun way.

Workshop I: Making Your Mark

We tried a few different techniques exploring what our drawing materials could do, experimenting with things like the way that we held the material, twisting and pulling it, and leaning lightly/heavily to see if it affected the marks that we made.

Workshop I: Making Your Mark

When we compared the many marks and textures we could create from just one material, it was quite surprising. For me the best bit was the seeing each participant’s journey, some, from disbelief and expressions of “I can’t do that”, to “Wow, I made that!”

Workshop I: Making Your Mark

Workshop II: Decadent Drawings 

This still life drawing workshop was inspired by Baroque, a period of art that is celebrated for it’s sensuous richness and dramatic use of colour.

Kim Scouller / Workshop II: Decadent Drawings

We used vibrant chalk pastel colours on black paper to re-create a flavour of Baroque drama.

Workshop II: Decadent Drawings

The idea was to initially use one pastel for a line drawing and then, to block in the shapes using expressive colour and to smudge and layer the pastels.

Workshop II: Decadent Drawings

I was amazed and inspired by how bold and beautiful the drawings turned out. It really took people out of their colour comfort zones, perhaps encouraging them to not worry about the results so much and to enjoy the process of making.

Workshop II: Decadent Drawings

I think the CSM workshops really help people to engage with making and understanding what goes into creating an artwork. So even if in a small way, it creates an awareness and greater appreciation of the work seen at the fair.

Workshop II: Decadent Drawings

Also, having dipped their toe in creating something themselves, visitors have the opportunity to continue their interest in art by suddenly finding out about and hopefully studying on one of the amazing short courses at CSM.

If you would like to see more of Kim Scouller’s work you can visit her website, www.kimscouller.com, you can also follow Kim on Facebook (@kimscoullerart), Twitter (@kimscoullerart) and via Instagram (@_kimbo_s_). Feeling inspired? Why not #trysomethingnew and select a short course for yourself! To view all of our short courses and to book a place simply visit the Central Saint Martins short courses website.

Last year Fashion Design FAAP student, Christopher Tanelli, won the amazing FAAP Moda competition. Winning a place upon one of Central Saint Martin’s incredible Summer School courses, we spoke to Christopher about what the competition was like and what studying in London holds for the future 🙂

At first I really didn’t have the expectation to make it to the competition at all. It’s a really competitive event between students at FAAP, and with me being so young and early in the Fashion Design course, I thought that my chances were the lowest.

©Christopher Tanelli

After being selected I had to start testing and draping each look until it looked the most like my sketches, so it could be developed in the right fabric and realised in the 3D printed pieces planned for each look. We also had casting meetings for models and a beauty meeting for the conceptualization of the make-up look, to be worn by the models.

©Christopher Tanelli

Usually the six chosen students entered into the competition are about to conclude their BA, or are in the process of starting research for their thesis. When the ranking was published it really was a shock! I’ve always been the kind of student with self-doubt about my work, and some teachers showed uncertainty about my collection the day before deadline to the submission date, so it was so much more rewarding and a real honour just to be a part of the six to showcase their collections.

©Christopher Tanelli

Looking ahead, it has always been a dream of mine to study in London and at Central Saint Martins, ever since I decided to go down the fashion path when I was around sixteen. It really is an honour to be receiving this opportunity! I expect to spend most my time studying and working on the projects after classes, for the best experience I can get.

©Christopher Tanelli

On picking a course, at the moment I’m deciding between Pattermaking – Experimental and Explorative Approaches Part 1 and Draping Womenswear Design. The construction of a garment is one of my biggest interests in the fashion design, so that’s why I’m presently caught between the two courses.

©Christopher Tanelli

We look forward to seeing Christopher this Summer School and catching up later in the year! If you’re feeling inspired, you can check out all our upcoming courses right now! See you soon 😀

In this week’s Meet Our Tutors, we caught up with new tutor Riina Õun, who tutors upon the brand new Leather Glove Making Workshop course, which will be running this summer 🙂

“Riina Õun”, ©Raigo Tnisalu

What are you most passionate about?

The world. I love travelling and finding inspiration in the heritage of different cultures.

How did you come to work in your field or discipline?  

After completing my degree in Leather Art and Accessories Design I specialised in footwear, glove design and making; over time only the latter remained. I started working with top London fashion designers and it became apparent there was a demand for the maker of luxurious high-quality leather gloves.

When I started my brand Riina O, five years ago, I chose to concentrate on one product group – luxurious leather gloves. Recently I have noticed that the craft of hand making gloves is on the verge of extinction, which is why I have started teaching a glove making workshop, to carry on the traditional skills.

“Riina Õun”, ©Raigo Tnisalu

Can you tell us more about your work?

As a brand, Riina O, the central concept is joining the traditional hand-craftsmanship with modern technological advantages, such as laser cutting or water-jet cutting, etc. The outcome is pushing the boundaries of glove design while preserving the artistry.

Additionally, in recent years, I have been working on hand prosthetic projects, crossing over to the field of human robotics.

What course do you teach and who should attend it?

I teach the Leather Glove Making Workshop. This is an intensive 5-day masterclass teaching skills from the rich and symbolic history of gloves to pattern adjustment, and actual hands-on making of a pair of leather gloves – modified to fit you “like a glove”.

The workshop is perfect for the passionate glove-enthusiasts as well as people who just want to learn new skills. Ideally, new students would have some previous experience with hand stitching or leatherwork.

Madeleine gloves, ©Riina Õun

Which piece of creative work, in any discipline, do you think everyone should see and why?

Perhaps not so much of a creative work, as a material. I am deeply captivated by lab-grown leather, now known by the name Zoa – the leather of the future!

Having specialised in leather as my main work material, there are not any comparable synthetic substitutes that could compete with it based on the qualities of the material. However, I am hoping a lab-grown leather will finally be able to offer a “humane” competition. I have not yet had the chance to work with this material, but I am awaiting this opportunity impatiently.

Name a favourite book, film or song that you would recommend.

The film I most recently watched was the Cuban version of the brilliantly hilarious Russian classic 12 Chairs, which was screened at the famous Sands Films movie night. If you can I suggest you watch all the 34 versions of the film created worldwide. I have seen 3 different variants so far.

What is your favourite London discovery?

The curiosity cabinets at the Welcome Collection, hosting the strangest items found around the world and some beautiful antique prosthetics.

To find out more about Riina you can visit her website at www.riinao.com, and be sure to check out her Facebook (@riina0), Instagram (@riina__o) and Twitter (@Riina__O) accounts. Feeling inspired? We are now taking bookings for Leather Glove Making Workshop which starts on 20th August 2018, for five days … see you there!

Whilst Summer Term is now underway, we fondly look back at Easter School 2018, via our competition blog post winner, Aida Lebedeva. Aida, a practicing artist, studied upon two Easter School courses at UAL; here she shares her experience and examples of the incredible work she has produced upon her courses.

Aida Lebedeva

What is your name and where are you from?

Aida Lebedeva. I was born in Lithuania and I have lived in London for the past sixteen years.

What is your occupation?

I am an artists. I’m presently working on my paintings, drawings and a website.

©Aida Lebedeva

What courses did you study on and why did you choose them?

During Easter School I studied Life Drawing with Light and Shadow, because I love drawing the human figure; last year, Autumn Term, I studied Anatomical Drawing for Beginners to develop my drawing ability. Outside of CSM, I also studied Oil Painting Level 2, at Chelsea College of Arts, to learn more about the advanced techniques of oil painting

©Aida Lebedeva

What did you enjoy most about your courses?

Upon Life Drawing with Light and Shadow I loved the tutor’s choice of models, they were wonderful, and how fantastic and inspiring the teacher was (the BP Portrait Award Prize 2018 shortlisted, Miriam Escofet). The class atmosphere made me feel like I could be happy to study forever at Central Saint Martins.

How has the course benefited your career and personal development?

Personally it has benefited me greatly, in many ways. I gained confidence and knowledge that will help me open doors to becoming a known, professional artist, in the future.

©Aida Lebedeva

What would you say to someone who is thinking about taking a short course at Central Saint Martins?

Choose the course you would love to develop your skills and expand your abilities in. This will benefit you greatly whilst studying for a shorter period of time, and you will definitely meet inspiring people!

©Aida Lebedeva

What do you believe is integral to the work of an artist, in any discipline?

I believe ability comes from within, but even talented people require the knowledge and practice to learn the basics and certain rules about art.

What three words best describe your short course experience at CSM?

Inspiring. Wonderful. Success.

©Aida Lebedeva

Final words…

Thank you for a great opportunity to learn new skills. I will never forget this experience and I look forward to developing further with CSM, in future.

Want to see more of Aida’s impressive work, check out her Instagram account, @artgallery_aida, today. If you’re feeling inspired we have a wide range of amazing short courses available for you to book, right now, upon the CSM Short Courses website, what will you choose?

Previously we interviewed Viktorija Hazane about her time upon our Ceramics for Beginners course, which you can read here: “A closer look at Ceramics for Beginners”. As we were so impressed by Viktorija’s work we caught up with her again to discuss the work she made and processes involved.

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

When deciding which short course to take I didn’t have an exact plan of what I wanted to do because I didn’t know what I would personally be able to make. I knew that I wanted to try something practical, something that I could put into everyday use. I am very house proud and I love having things around me that have stories or that I have made myself. I recently moved house which made me realise that there were many practical everyday items that I needed which I hoped I could make on the Ceramics for Beginners course. I am very happy with the amount of ceramics I managed to produce, with most of them already put into good use as planters, plates, a soap dish and tiles as coasters.

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

My pineapple planters were made using a slip casting process. First we covered how to make a mould from an object of our choice, in my case it happened to be a pineapple. The colouring process was experimental, but I was hoping to achieve a somewhat natural look. I used iron oxide which brought out the details of the texture, red slip with a clear glaze for the lighter pot and green slip with a tinted brown spray glaze for the darker one.

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

Both of my plates were made by using a slip casting technique and a mould that was already available for students to use. I used porcelain for the blue plate and the speckle effect was achieved by flicking a paint brush dipped in cobalt under glaze and applying a clear glaze afterwards. I used a regular slip for my other plate and the black speckles were applied by flicking a paint brush dipped in iron oxide on top of the glaze.

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

The soap dish was a fun and quick project that I made in the midst of casting my other objects. The base was pinched out of white clay and the legs attached a bit later. I then applied some cobalt and later some light yellow under glaze dots. I love using my soap dish and it fits my sink perfectly.

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

In just five sessions the whole class produced a lot of work using different techniques and we even got to try a little bit of throwing. We experimented with slips, underglazes, oxides and glazes.  I am definitely excited about working with clay again in the future!

© Viktorija Hazane, Ceramics for Beginners work

There are currently spaces available to book on our next Ceramics for Beginners course starting in July! If you’re simply feeling inspired and would like to see what other CSM Short Courses are on offer, click here.

We are very pleased to announce that @kayaybee is the winner of our final Easter School at Central Saint Martins, week 4, Instagram competition!

Typography student work, ⓒ@kayaybee (Instagram)

We loved this picture and how much it sums up what amazing experiences can be had at Central Saint Martins, from beginners to those reconnecting with past experiences!

student work, #CSMEasterCompetition (Instagram)

The winner, as always, takes home a £25 Amazon voucher …enjoy 🙂 AND we want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who entered our Instagram competition over the last four weeks. We hope the competition has inspired you to take up one of our many incredible short courses at Central Saint Martins.

Feeling inspired? If you’re still looking for an amazing new evening, Saturday, weekend, online, or even day course, our Summer Terms starts from next week Monday and there are plenty of courses to still choose from. See you there! 🙂 We also have bookable places upon the upcoming Typography courses, starting in July.

We are very pleased to announce that @conomi_n is the winner of our Easter School at Central Saint Martins, week 3, Instagram competition!

100 Design Projects student work, ⓒ@ conomi_n (Instagram)

@conomi_n actually submitted a number of entries into the competition and we thought each one was equally as fantastic! 😀

100 Design Projects student work, ⓒ@ conomi_n (Instagram)

As always the winner takes home a £25 Amazon voucher and we want to, again, say a massive thank you to everyone who entered in week 3. If you haven’t done so already, we hope the competition has inspired you to take up one of our many incredible short courses.

student work, #CSMEasterCompetition (Instagram)

Remember, if you are studying with us over Easter School 2018 and are entering the @CSMShortCourses, student’s only, competition, make sure you hashtag: #CSMEasterCompetition AND #MyCSM (and don’t forget, if your account is private we won’t be able to see your pictures!). SO GET POSTING 😀 !!!

Easter School at Central Saint Martins takes place over 4 weeks, from 19th March – 13thApril 2018. All upcoming Easter School courses can be viewed and booked on our website. We also run a fantastic full schedule of short courses during evening, weekends, online and Saturdays, throughout the year! We are also accepting bookings for the next 100 Design Projects course which will be running in the next few weeks …see you there!

We are very pleased to announce that @crisbarros.m is the winner of our Easter School at Central Saint Martins, week 2, Instagram competition!

Experimental Jewellery student work, ⓒ@crisbarros.m (Instagram)

We were amazed at the verity of work that was created upon the Experimental Jewellery course, and loved seeing so many unique pieces of jewellery from one student.

@crisbarros.m takes home a £25 Amazon voucher and we’ve loved looking at what goes on in such a fantastic course!

Thank you to everyone who entered in week 2 and we hope it’s inspired you to take up one of our many incredible short courses 🙂

student work, #CSMEasterCompetition (Instagram)

Remember, if you are studying with us over Easter School 2018 and are entering our @CSMShortCourses, student’s only, competition, make sure your hashtag: #CSMEasterCompetition AND #MyCSM (and don’t forget, if your account is private we won’t be able to see your pictures!). SO GET POSTING 😀 !!!

Easter School at Central Saint Martins takes place over 4 weeks, from 19^th March – 13^th April 2018. All upcoming Easter School courses can be viewed and booked on our website. We also run a fantastic full schedule of short courses during evening, weekends, online and Saturdays, throughout the year! We are also accepting bookings for the next Experimental Jewellery course which will be running in July 2018 …see you there!

Looking to start or develop your fashion portfolio? Whether you’re looking to apply for further education, seeking a new position or even a change of career, Fashion Folio is the perfect solution for both students and professionals.

Fashion Folio is a fantastic, fun and highly intensive fashion programme where you will also be given advice about further studies or personal and professional development. Students complete projects in order to build a portfolio that represents their own personal approach and style to fashion design. The course will push your understanding of fashion and challenge your preconceived ideas of how to design garments. Visual research, experimentation and idea development, combined with unique presentation skills, will be the focus of everything you do. You will be expected to work hard, find inspiration in new and unexpected places and identify your strengths and weaknesses whilst learning to overcome your limitations.

© Fashion Folio, 2015

Broken down into three stages, each stage is taught on a progressive basis offering you the chance to potentially study for up to one academic year. Whilst it is recommended that you attend all three stages, depending on the individual, you can also apply to each stage separately, providing your work demonstrates the ability and experience appropriate to the stage for entry.

• Stage one – for students developing/revisiting their portfolios
• Stage two – for students developing/revisiting/finalising their portfolios
• Stage three – for students finalising/refining their portfolios

© Fashion Folio, 2016

In order to fully benefit from Fashion Folio you should be at least 18 years old and have some form of education or work experience related to art and design. Your Fashion Folio submission portfolio should be able to demonstrate an interest in fashion and show some fashion experience.

© Fashion Folio, 2017

If you have never studied fashion before we highly recommend doing a short course in fashion design and/or fashion drawing prior to applying for stage one.

If you are interested in applying to any of the Fashion Folio stages you can find out more about the course and apply here. We also offer full-time portfolio preparation courses in art and design, graphic design, photography and textiles. Gradates and professionals can also apply to the highly sought after innovative pattern cutting course.