Year 2

The second year of your degree programme is an opportunity to direct your embroidery practice towards your chosen area of specialism: fashion, interiors, textile art. It may be that you decide that you want to keep your options open and continue to work across all or some of these discipline areas, then that is fine too. There will be the opportunity to redefine your practice again at Year Three.

In your second year we will continue to teach you RSN technical hand embroidery stitches but you will progress onto the more advanced techniques of Whitework, Advanced Goldwork and Raised work. There is also the opportunity for you to work on Live Projects and work in conjunction with designers, galleries and the textile industry as part of the Live Project Unit.

The second year also enables you to further your academic research and essay writing skills and critical analysis. The unit, Textiles in Context Two will introduce you to key issues and themes relating to the production and consumption of textiles and fashion in the past and in contemporary society. The research and essays for this unit will provide a foundation for your Dissertation / Critical Reflection unit in third year. This is taught through gallery visits, formal lectures, seminars and tutorials.

We will work with you to develop project proposals to support both your practical and theoretical units. This will enable you to become conversant with the critical language and discourse associated with the practice and theory of your subject.

Year Two closes with visits to New Designers at the Business Design Centre, and the UCA Degree Shows at the Farnham Campus. We expect you to undertake critical reviews of these exhibitions in preparation for your third year.

Prior to you leaving at the end of second year, you will have a tutorial to help define your dissertation subject area so you can begin to research over the summer vacation.