Being one of the most sought-after destinations for art students globally, London has a lot to offer! With a multitude of museums, galleries and cultural spaces in constant evolution – many of which are free to attend – London is a hub of inspiration, collaboration and exploration. At UAL we welcome large numbers of international students each year to our pre-degree or foundation diploma in art and design, undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Within that community, we have a growing number of students who join us from Canada.
If you’re a student in Canada considering applying to study at UAL, you’ll most likely have a few questions – How does education in the UK compare to that in Canada, and what are the key differences? How will having a global education enhance my practice and future career? We caught up with Dr Lois Rowe, Canadian artist and Fine Art Programme Director at Camberwell College of Arts to try and answer some of these questions.
Read on to discover more about Lois’ own practice and her tips on maximising your experience of living in London.
What are the benefits of studying at UAL for Canadian students interested in studying in London?
Studying in London presents so many benefits to students from Canada. First of all, it situates students in an international context which will expose them to a wide range of cultures and histories. I actually studied at undergraduate level in Canada and my own art practice was very much based within Canadian histories, my complicity within a settler’s historical narrative and my understanding of aboriginality as a motivator for socially engaged practice.
Here in London, students will be encouraged to learn about a wider global context, to visit museums, art galleries, performances, field trips. Of course, this will be a context that is historically connected to the city they are visiting from, but they will be encouraged to begin interrogating London as a unique site for their personal art or design practice and to try to adapt some of their ideas into new forms of making and discourse. Inevitably, this will provoke the students’ learning journey to change, adapt and grow.
Can you explain the typical trajectory of study for British students and how that compares with standard progression through Canadian education?
Many of our British students do what is called a pre-degree or Foundation Diploma in Art and Design (FAD) before they start their BA. The first year on a pre-degree course is really an equivalent to a Canadian first year of a 4 year programme where you are introduced to quite a structured way of working. On FAD, students follow briefs, which are designed to introduce them to different subject specialisms, and based on their development across areas students are then encouraged to move towards an appropriate area and they complete their course in a more focused way This really helps students understand the differences between Art and Design as well as some of the nuances about which courses may be right for them to progress onto. Some students will inevitably gravitate towards more creative or experimental courses while others chose more commercially focused routes.
But here in the UK the pre-degree course also does something else, which is quite unique to Art and Design education: it really prepares students for a creative higher education more broadly. It is diagnostic in nature and encourages students to initiate what is referred to as an ‘independent’ or ‘self-directed’ practice. I personally didn’t have the experience of a foundation as I studied in Canada at Concordia University. The beginning of my 4-year degree was more ‘teacher-led’ and introduced me to all of the processes and histories that were seen as essential for my chosen route in Fine Art. Of course, I had some flexibility in that, such as the option to do Electives, but overall, the focus was much less ‘student-led’ than it is here in the UK, and was instead much more defined by the teaching of practice and theories.
What are the differences when it comes to creative education in the UK in comparison to Canada?
The main advantage of experiencing the UK model of creative education is that I believe it better equips you for having your own creative practice when you leave education. It assumes you are an artist or creative already, and encourages you to find your own creative path and articulate what makes your practice unique and relevant to a contemporary world.
My own experience of Canadian creative education was nurturing and structured. I remember drinking up lots of incredible lectures that I still remember to this day. But I also remember the day it all ended, when I graduated. I suddenly had no idea how to sustain myself through creative means. It was a cliff edge moment!
When I eventually came to the UK to study a creative Masters course I was suddenly faced with what many of our Canadian students face when they come: I was given a space and told that my next steps were really up to me. My whole relationship with the institution changed. Suddenly, things were down to me to direct. It was really terrifying at first! But through conversations with my peers and tutors, I gradually figured out what I needed to do each day. I needed to develop a practice and understand its relationship with the world. And at the end of my course I understood that that was the whole point, that in order to fully understand my work’s relationship to the world it needed to come from me.
What direct or transferable skills can come from studying in London that may be appealing to employers, whether in the UK or Canada?
The most valuable and unseen transferable skill is actually the way in which students develop strategies for negotiating their interests and practice within London. When I meet students throughout their stay in the UK I am lucky enough to see these strategies emerging. Other skills are more tangible, such as the cultural understandings of etiquette around approaching galleries, hanging shows with their peers, doing site visits and generally building confidence in talking about art and culture.
Could you tell us a bit about your own practice as a fine artist and how those experiences inform your teaching at UAL?
Well my practice has covered many different areas as I’ve moved through my career. I actually started my studies in Canada in Costume Design and went on to work as a dancewear designer in Tokyo, Japan. I then worked in the film industry before enrolling onto a Fine Art course at Concordia University which specialised in textile processes such as print-making and weaving. So those physical practices – in terms of ritual and tangible literacies, are still really important to me. For me they have led to opportunities that have extended beyond linguistic and cultural barriers. My ability to design and understand garment construction enabled me to work in a Japanese-speaking atelier where very little English was spoken. It was really my creative education that prepared me for this kind of opportunity.
The courses I oversee at Wimbledon College of Arts and Camberwell College of Arts really prioritise process and physical making, but they are also built on a vision that art can change the world. That there is a socially enabling way in which art can overcome barriers and engage in wider issues.
I teach about these issues and this empowering possibility of art was the focus of my PhD study. These days my role at UAL is often as a facilitator. I like to embark on projects with the students and I enjoy working in ways that foreground strategies to keep moving forward in the face of challenges. I feel this is a really important part of being an artist actually, that as the world changes, we change as well.
The project 'Shared Worlds' was from a couple of years ago where I initiated a VR work with a group of students, which was the creation of a virtual space, which became a kind of hub for other online collaborations. We presented this work at Wimbledon College of Arts as part of Acts Re-Acts, which was until recently an annual performance festival there. Subsequently the project grew and we reached out to the University of Linz and collaborated with some students from the MA Interface Cultures programme there. I really enjoyed facilitating this kind of virtual collaboration and we were then invited back last year to curate part of the Ars Electronica 40th Anniversary Festival.
What resources are available for students joining UAL from Canada that you think they should be aware of?
One of the biggest resources at UAL are its incredible staff, its researchers and its professors. But equally, the students find the relationships they forge with the technical team here are absolutely life-changing. In fact, usually in feedback it is the technicians who have had the deepest impact on student learning. So it is a combination of all these things, and also the University’s incredible, world-leading facilities, research centres, archives and studios. Being in London, students will need to be aware of the scale of our city, that it is vibrant, active and at times a daunting place to live. I would definitely encourage students to prepare a list of personal priorities before coming to London. I often speak to students about the fact that if you are a visitor to London you see much more: that as a resident it is easy to become complacent and lazy! There is just so much to see, all the time. But usually for our Canadian students, that is the best place to start.
Get out to the galleries, see shows, see as much as you can to begin with. This is the best way to begin to navigate and get inspired all at once.
How can students make the most of their time studying in London. What are your top tips for maximising their experience?
As I’ve mentioned it is incredibly important to see the city. See what it has to offer. Don’t just see the Tate, see independent spaces as well. Discover your corner of London, then move outside of it. Ask your course leader to recommend relevant things to see as well.
Once you are enrolled on your course it is really important to seek out the areas you wish to work in. Meet the technicians straight away, book yourself into inductions, attend lectures, begin that process of defining your own path that is such an important part of the UK creative education. You will be supported wherever you need it, but it is important to plan your time and make priorities for your journey while you are here because before you know it, it will be time to think about leaving and students always, always, wish they had time to do more!
