The MA Creative Practice is all about working with projects: from coming up with the initial idea and thinking through theoretical and practical implications, we progress by considering how to formulate and then pitch proposals, work on putting all of this into practice, give thought to publicity and marketing and finally arrive at the MA Exhibition where everything comes to fruition in the form of a substantial body of creative work.
Diversity is one of the key strengths of the MA – diversity in practice for one, but also diversity in the student body, with students drawn from a range of age groups and backgrounds. This year we have students working at the intersection of science, environmentalism and the arts who are looking at the collaborative word of mycelium through ‘microgaphy’, notions of waste and pollution in relation to the representation of seascapes, working with soundscapes and recording the sounds of the earth, and also the representation of, and advocation for, peat bogs and peat bog renewal through the medium of film. In addition, we have a student adapting Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein for a graphic novel, another looking at design and the defamiliarisation of gender ideology, another is working on representing the ‘thingness’ of artefacts recovered from the doomed Franklin expedition in the form of poetry and fine art, and finally another student has moved from the world of the graphic novel into digital creation with an ambitious project intended to subvert notions of space, time, self and other (everything) in a virtual/not virtual gallery/not gallery. All of our students this year have shown an openness and receptiveness to new ideas as well as an impressive willingness to experiment with new practices and new directions which has been exciting and invigorating for everyone involved.
Dr Paul Ferguson | Course Leader
Dwayne Bell
With a background in editorial illustration, Dwayne Bell is programme leader for BA (Hons) Illustration at The University of Cumbria. His recent research has been in the field of reportage and observational illustration; giving him ample opportunity to do what he loves most – DRAW.
Dwayne has exhibited work in London, Moscow, Manchester, Leeds, Carlisle, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Richard Berry
I’m a filmmaker and photographer based in the English Lake District. I provide my creative services in an uncomplicated, effective and friendly way.
It’s been a long journey to get to where I am today. I lived and worked in Asia for much of my adult life, working in international business. I was a teacher and a freelance graphic designer. I still enjoy teaching at a University from time to time.
Lucy Hadley
Lucy Hadley is a Designer and Illustrator living in Galloway, South West Scotland, where her studio practice mixes traditional mark making techniques with modern digital tools.
Graduating with a first class honours degree in Graphic Design (BA Hons) Lucy was awarded the University of Cumbria’s Derwent Prize for Excellence in 2015. She returned to university, focussing on environmental ethics and narratology, completing an MA in Creative Practice (Pass with Distinction) in 2020.
