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Insights: shape your portfolio

A collaged image with a blue background featuriing a person leaning to the right whilst wearing an angular structure
A collaged image with a blue background featuriing a person leaning to the right whilst wearing an angular structure
Featured collage image, photograph from UAL Insights workshop, Jerry Florez.

Enhance your creativity with our programmes and resources

UAL Insights is the University’s outreach programme offering young people access to our Colleges for creative activities and pre-university advice.

Build your skills and knowledge with our resources, made by our community of UAL tutors and students.

Develop your work

  • A collaged image with a yellow background featuring a close up of hands operating a sound app on a mobile phone
    Featured collage, still from from video produced by Dalia Dawood. 2019.

    How to

    Learn practical skills to build a portfolio. Design, podcasts, curation and more - dive into tips and advice put together by UAL's students and tutors.

  • A collaged image with a blue background featuring a group of students, gathered together. It looks like the central figure is a designer standing with her models.
    Featured collage image, group shot of Rafin Jannat with models from the Jarafin shoot. 2019. BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear. London College of Fashion. UAL. Photograph: Calvin Chinthaka.

    Into uni

    Myth-busting articles on subject areas. UAL Insights students talk about their work and life. Find out what it's like to study a creative subject in a leading university.

  • A collaged image with a pink background featuring a collage of a poster wirh paint dripping from the top
    Featured collage image Rosemary Cronin

    Topics

    Get new ideas and knowledge to shape your next project. Browse work by leading designers, discover artists and thinkers.

  • A collaged image with a green background featuring a magazine spread.
    Featured collage image Sam Walsh. BA Graphic Branding and Identity, London College of Communication. UAL. Photograph: Sam Walsh.

    Insights archives

    Browse all our posts. Practical tips for making, ideas, artists and student stories - it's all here.

Apply to UAL Insights

16+? Find out more and sign up for our upcoming programmes

Featured tips: how to make a great sketchbook

  • Playful drawings from a sketchbook
    Page from Jean Julien's sketchbook. Photograph: courtesy of Jean Julien.

    Themes/Identity: What’s in your sketchbook?

    Stuck on what to fill your sketchbook with? Oliver has some ideas to get you thinking.

  • a red and white spotted notebook placed on a small table
    Still from How to make a sketchbook video. Photograph: Hamish Mek Chohan.

    Techniques: Sketchbooks

    Oliver and Hamish’s step-by-step guide to making your own sketchbook is an unashamed tribute to ’90’s Art Attack legend, Neil Buchanan!

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    Portrait of Ishmael Lartey. BA Hons Fine Art. Central Saint Martins. 2016. Photograph: Kalina Pulit

    Insights introduces: Ishmael

    In this episode of Insights introduces, we caught up with fine art student Ishmael to find out more about how he approaches his work.

  • Honour Beddoe. Page from sketchbook with ruler to demonstrate scale. Photograph: Alex Wojcik.
    Honour Beddoe, Honour Beddoe. Page from sketchbook with ruler to demonstrate scale. Photograph: Alex Wojcik.
    | Photograph: Honour Beddoe

    Techniques: Photograph sketchbooks and 2D work

    So, you’ve got your mini studio set up thanks to Alex’s first video. Now let's start by looking at how you can photograph your flat 2-dimensional work.

  • More tips

Learn more

Find out more about the programme and eligibility criteria.

Meet the team

Meet the Outreach team and get in touch