A series of thirty-eight interviews with key figures involved in the history of UAL including decision-makers, current and former staff and alumni have been compiled as a collection of oral histories that narrate the story of the formation and development of the university. Now the UAL Archives and Special Collections Centre (ASCC) has worked with London College of Communication MA Sound Arts student Margarita Novikova to produce a short film to give a glimpse into the oral history collection and the kind of stories and memories that it preserves.
Recorded by a professional oral historian and representing a range of views from across the university, the histories provide an oral and video accompaniment to UAL’s growing archive of institutional records. Among those featured in the collection are past Chair Will Wyatt, former head of BBC television and broadcast; Sir John Tusa, journalist, broadcaster and past Chair; past Rector and former Chief Executive of the Inner London Education Authority William Stubbs; Carol Tulloch, Professor of Dress and Diaspora at Camberwell College of Arts and Sandra Holtby, Former Head of London College of Fashion.
The UAL Institutional Archive holds an extensive collection of material that documents the formation and development of University of the Arts London, and its previous incarnation, The London Institute – as well as staff and student activity – from the mid-1980s to the present day. The archive was brought together as a result of the UAL Institutional Memory Project, an initiative that ran between October 2015 and August 2016 in order to survey, assess and collect records that told the story of the institution. Material includes items concerning the formation, governance, operations and functions of the institution as well as records documenting staff and student experiences.
The majority of the collection can be accessed by appointment at the searchroom of the UAL Archives and Special Collections Centre, situated at London College of Communication.
Find out more
Watch the short film on the UAL YouTube channel.
Browse the UAL Institutional Archive catalogue
Contact the UAL Archives and Special Collections Centre