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The 2008 Degree Show at The Glasgow School of Art (GSA), sponsored principally by Elphinstone, opens its doors to the public at 10am on Saturday 14th June and will run with free admission until Saturday 21st June at 5pm.

Visitors to the 2008 Degree Show at one of Europe’s leading specialist art schools can expect to view works of the highest creative standard. One of the largest degree shows in the United Kingdom, approximately 20,000 visitors, including international galleries and fine art collectors, will pour through the world-renowned campus to view the range of work on show.  

Ken Ross, Chairman of Elphinstone, said of the show: “We have bought paintings at previous Glasgow School of Art Degree Shows and we are pleased to have taken our support to another level – as the principal sponsor of this important annual showcase for emerging talent.

“We include a percentage for art in new developments. We use art to add value to workplaces for the people who work there. Our business is all about adding value to land and property and the use of art at entrances, in reception areas, on patios and along walkways adds enormously to the style and personality of a building. 

For the 2008 Degree Show sculptor Natalie Lambert has designed large pieces which resemble the wooden beams in the Mackintosh Building. They will mimic the architecture of the world-famous building giving visitors the optical challenge of separating the installed artwork from the original framework.  Fellow Sculpture and Environmental Art student Steve Helm will install a live wormery sculpture, ensuring they are well fed and suitably shaded for the duration of the show. Lastly, Keith Allan has created a mobile social club which explores the West coast dialect in rural pubs and community halls around Scotland.

Leah Black, Goldsmith’s Young Designer Silversmith Award winner 2007, has created a range of intricate pieces for the show. Leah won the competition to design The Hunter Cup, the image of which graces this year’s Degree Show posters and invitations. Jasleen Kaur, who has won a coveted place at London’s Royal College of Art, explores ritual worship, the notion of religious shrines and the contrast between British and Indian cultures in her jewellery.

The Painting and Printmaking department offers up striking psychedelic and baroque inspired paintings by Lucy MacDonald. Lucy is influenced by the style, social and political movements of the 1960s and 1970s including Altamont and The Summer of Love. Angharad Davies has built ‘burger van’, a work which visitors can climb inside to indulge in, not junk snacks, but sculptural food influenced by 1960s housewives’ bible The Good Housekeeping book. She is interested in nomadic, transitory experiences and with her work will take people on their own journey.

Fine Art Photography’s show includes work by Hannah Hewett whose 14ft climbing wall with moulded knee and elbow bones explores the use of the body as a way of ascent. Also on show will be work by Fergus Fullarton-Pegg which comments on the human condition.  Michael Mersinis’ boat model explores his interest in islands and how space is defined and Sam Fenn explores lost heritage through music.

Travel is the inspiration for Jennifer Groundwater’s scarves which form part of the Textiles department show. Influenced by her tour around Europe in a campervan, the kitsch scarves feature traditional motifs. Sophie Charles’ bright and colourful woven fabrics are inspired by geometric architectural structures in Paris and London and scattered coloured homes in the Ecuadorian mountains.

A range of clever solutions form the Product Design show. Jennifer Kay, who was shortlisted for the RCA prize with fellow students Alice Tyler, Joanne Tauber, Michael Johnson and Liz Eeuwes, has designed Pyramid Route to Recovery, a communication tool and personal file for those receiving mental health support in the community. Liz Eeuwes has created Quite Frankly, a game which educates children and their parents on personal safety and Michael Johnson has created a fridge helps make choices about which food to eat.

A range of exceptional inventions will be unveiled at the Product Design Engineering show. Biggart Baillie Innovation Award winner Andrew McAlister has designed a barrier which protects against car bombs. Rosa Uchima has worked with a university in Japan on the design of components for robotic legs which can carry a person while Craig Lynn is working on a personal pollution detector.

The Digital Design Studio will host a showreel of graduating students work at the Mackintosh Lecture Theatre from Saturday 14th June until Saturday 21st June throughout the day.

GSA graduates include 2008 Turner Prize nominee Cathy Wilkes; Turner Prize winners Simon Starling and Douglas Gordon; Beck’s Future’s winners Ruddy Buchanan, Toby Paterson and Rosalind Nashashibi; Architect Gareth Hoskins; Design Director of Jaguar Cars, Ian Callum; Fashion Designers Jonathan Saunders, Louise Gray, Scott Ramsay Kyle and Jamie Bruski Tetsill and Stirling Prize nominees, architects Charlie Sutherland and Charlie Hussey.

The Degree Show 2008 website will go live on Thursday 12th June 2008.

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For further information or a selection of images, contact Sharon McHendry, Media Relations Officer, The Glasgow School of Art.  Tel: 0141 353 4443 or e-mail s.mchendry@gsa.ac.uk. M: 07970 178643.

Notes for Editors:

Listings:

GSA Degree Show 2008

Saturday 14th June - Saturday 21st June

The Glasgow School of Art

167 Renfrew Street

Glasgow G3 6RQ

Opening times are Saturdays 10am - 5pm, Sunday 10am - 5pm, Monday – Thursday 10am - 9pm, Friday 10am - 7pm. (Last entry to each building is 30 minutes before closing).

Tel: 0141 353 4500

The Glasgow School of Art Degree Show 2008 will take up all of the school’s gallery spaces, floors and studios and will offer visitors the opportunity to explore work across Sculpture and Environmental Art, Textiles, Silversmithing and Jewellery, Interior Design, Fine Art Photography, Ceramics, Painting and Printmaking, Visual Communication, Digital Design Studio, Architecture, Product Design and Product Design Engineering.

Degree Show sponsors and supporters are Elphinstone, Blythswood Square Glasgow, MacFarlane Group, Strathmore Spring Water, Julie Claire Florist, Dog Digital, Heineken, Bier Hof Republic and D8. The Product Design New Directions Degree Show is sponsored by Bo Concept. The Product Design Engineering Degree Show is sponsored principally by Teknek and also Murgitroyd and Company.

Tickets for The Glasgow School of Art Degree Show 2008 city night preview on Thursday 12 June (7pm – 10pm) are available to media by e-mailing press@gsa.ac.uk or by calling 0141 353 4443.