Angus Stewart
College
London College of Communication
Person Type
Alumni
Angus completed MA Photojournalism and Documentary Photography in 2024. Angus is a self-employed photographer, printmaker and potter.
You graduated from MA Photojournalism and Documentary Photography in 2024. What was the most important learning you took from the course?
The most important thing I took from the course was that my creativity and expression were not limited to photography, and that research was fundamental to my practice.
I began the MA with an established practice in community engagement and portraiture, but by the time I graduated I was working with different printing processes and forms of presentation, including handmade books and zines. Ultimately, I came to understand my creativity not as a single area of expression, but as something that reflects the broader range of my life and interests.
What was a highlight from your time at LCC?
A highlight was the opportunity to explore different disciplines across the University and experiment beyond my existing practice, from darkrooms and alternative photographic processes to book arts, printmaking and 3D design. Throwing myself into the different modules and facilities introduced me to processes I had never considered and broadened my practice considerably.
How did your major project help you when you graduated?
For my major project, I worked with local artists and makers, exploring their studios through photography and creative exchange. The research and making of the work embedded me in the local arts community and established relationships that remain important to my practice today.
In terms of exchange, I taught artists to print their own photographs while learning elements of their crafts, including pottery, woodturning and stone carving. I continued with pottery and now make and sell my own ceramics — not something I expected to come from an MA in Documentary Photography - you never quite know where it will lead.
You are now self-employed photographer, printmaker and potter. Can you tell us more about your role?
Being self-employed means my role is quite varied. Alongside developing and making new work, I research projects, produce prints and ceramics, prepare work for exhibitions, apply for opportunities and commissions, and manage sales. There is also the less creative side of running a small business: maintaining my website, promoting my work, administration and keeping accounts. No two days are particularly alike.
How do you see the MA Photojournalism and Documentary Photography ethos reflected in the work you do?
The MAPJD ethos continues to inform my practice through its emphasis on research, critical enquiry and an expansive understanding of documentary photography. My work has moved increasingly towards printmaking and material processes, but remains rooted in observing and questioning the world around me, and finding appropriate mediums through which to communicate those encounters.
What’s the most exciting or fulfilling aspect of your current work?
Being a full-time artist and maker is both exciting and demanding. What I find most fulfilling is the combination of research, making and the continuing sense of personal and creative growth. Promoting and selling work are also necessary parts of sustaining a creative career, although I enjoy the social media and marketing rather less.
Have you won any awards or residencies or grants since leaving the course?
No. Plenty of exhibitions, but residencies and grants seem to elude me!
What are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on a series of salt prints documenting Hazelwood Marshes, a nature reserve undergoing a dramatic transformation from freshwater to salt marsh following the collapse of its sea wall. The death of established trees has created a striking landscape that records this ecological transition.
I’m also setting up a pottery studio and developing glazes using ash from local woodlands.
Image credits: Angus Stewart.