There was a talk held by Martin Salisbury who is the course leader. Martin seemed a very genuine person who was very approachable. He explain the workings and the aims of the course, the exhibitions and their tie in with publishers. The course has a heavy focus on drawing especially from observation, then image sequence. The final stage or project involves the creation of multiple picture books or any other form of illustration. Martin advised that he used this method to show the variety of work the students are capable of thus increasing their employability.
The thing that surprised me was how small the groups or classes are, each full time year has 60 people which is split in two so classes have 30 in each. There are two main classrooms and a printing studio which are used. Through speaking to students currently on the course I got the impression that there is plenty of time for tutorials and one to one sessions. There are both options of full and part time attendance. The course content is exactly the same as the full time although full time runs over 18 months and part time runs for 2 1/2 years. Both full and part time finish in January so that both attend the same exhibitions in London, Cambridge and the Bologna fair. The difference in the working of the courses is that full time attend three days a week and do much of the on site, part time attend one day a week so the work is done at home. This is due to the day being taken up with tutorials, one to one or small group discussions and a lecture at the end of the day.
I was able to see many of the students works as this years graduates books were out for us to look through. There were also books that they produce each year showing each students works, I imagine these are sent out to publishers as a small reference library for future as each image had the artists details beside them. The other factors were how may had won awards just after completing the course and how many had been published. Martin explained that due to the success of the course the publishers were already asking to see this years students work. He has told them no as he prefers to keep it fresh for the exhibitions and that most of the best work never comes together until nearer the end anyway which is something I agree with.
My overall impression of the course was that it seemed focused on the correct elements. The attitude of Martin was something that struck a chord with me. I had asked about being able to get experience with publishers through schemes such as work experience, to which he explained that we could gain access to get more of an understanding but not to worry to much about publishers trends or what they prefer. This was due to his thought on people doing work that suits them as what British publishers want is often rather conservative whereas international publishers are more likely to push boundaries. This said to me that I could do work that I felt was what I want to do and that they encourage people finding their own voice which is how I find teaching at Abertay. The only major factor I need to find out more about is how the financial side of things works out with payment of the course. Unfortunately this will have a major affect on whether I can attend this course and whether this would be on a full or part time basis. This course is now a serious consideration for me, I will find out the financial details and then give this more thought after the year as Martin takes applications and does interviews from January through to May.
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