Story courtesy of SUArts

Following students’ resounding win in the first staff v students football match, this month’s battle moved to the netball court to see if staff could even the score. Despite an evenly-matched first quarter, however, students once again won the day with 14 points to seven.

The afternoon provided a great opportunity for staff and students to socialise outside of university and was a way for the netball club to let themselves be known amongst these members of staff. Supporters from the Students Union, women’s hockey, mens hockey and rugby came to watch the match which we are very grateful for and just goes to prove what a close sporting community we have at UAL.

A special thanks needs to go to the staff members; Laura Tull, Monika Parrinder, Amelia Henderson, Alice Clark, Jacky Blake, Polly Nash and Victoria Richards for taking time out of their Wednesday afternoon to play against our university team.

Looking forward to the next one!

See more photos on Facebook.

This week 13 pioneering new cross-University Chair positions have been announced, reinforcing UAL’s position at the forefront of creative education. The new positions will focus on the University’s specialist areas of study and will reinforce UAL’s international reputation for excellence.  The professorships are being created through funding from the University’s Specialist Institution status earlier this year.  The University is now beginning the search for world-leading academics and creative
professionals who are practice- and thought-leaders in UAL’s disciplines, to support UAL’s ambition to shape the future of arts and design. 

With titles from interactive digital arts to visual communication, the new professors will have a UAL-wide remit. The positions will have a particular focus on enhancing student experience, including developing academic initiatives and activities through which students can take a broader overview of their studies and understand more deeply the cross-disciplinary arena in which they are working, through lectures, seminars, master classes and workshops open to all students across the University. The new professors will also play a part in developing curricula and graduate employability. Particularly for postgraduate students, the new professors will play an important role in building cross-UAL communities of practice and contribute to UAL’s research activities by identifying new opportunities for research collaborations, and engagement with industry and wider creative and cultural sectors.

Commenting on the news, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic Philip Broadhead said: “There are many benefits which will flow from the creation of these new University Chairs. For me the most important is the enrichment of the student experience, which will come from having leading academics and practitioners working across the University to offer new learning opportunities, develop academic synergies and foster curriculum development initiatives.”

Existing cross-University Chairs include Stephen Farthing RA, Rootstein Hopkins Chair of Drawing. He explains the importance and impact of this position for the University: “My research has enabled the University to take both a national and international lead in developing drawing pedagogy and new understandings of drawing as a cross-disciplinary subject. I have developed an entirely original taxonomy of drawing that we expect to have a long term impact on the art and design sectors understanding of drawing as both a creative tool and component part of general literacy.”

In his capacity as the Rootstein Hopkins Research Chair in Drawing , Farthing has facilitated, not only his personal research into cross disciplinary uses of drawing , but also created opportunities for academic staff across UAL to participate in international conferences and exhibitions, including those at the Chinese University in Hong Kong , RMIT in Melbourne and Columbia Teachers College in New York, where subjects relating to drawing and translation, drawing and literacy, and drawing and writing have been explored.

At grass roots level Farthing has worked with teaching staff from Camberwell and Wimbledon to write a drawing course and examination that is now delivered by the UAL Awarding Body to 4000 students a year across the UK. Farthing’s research has resulted in the publication of a series of books with Royal Academy Publishing that explore the sketch books of designers and artists.

The new Chairs will be in:  Design Practices; Archives and Collections; Art and Technology (CSM); Visual Communication; Interactive Digital Arts; Sound Arts (LCC); Art in the Environment (LCF); Fashion Practices; Visual Cultures; 3D Design (CCW); Black Art and Design; Art in the Public Realm; and Art and Design Pedagogies.

These positions are available as part or full-time roles for 2 or 3 years. Find out more about the roles and apply at http://jobs.arts.ac.uk. If you have any questions relating to the application process please contact Kieran Thompson, Recruitment & Resourcing Officer at sd-vacancies@arts.ac.uk or 020 7514 2020. Closing date: Sunday 23rd June 2013. UAL positively welcomes applicants from black and minority ethnic staff who are currently under-represented at this level.