So show off 18/19
MEET THE TEAM
MANAGING DIRECTORS
EDITORIAL
ISABELLE KUBE
CHLOE CAULTON
HOLLY THOMPSON
LAUREN JEFFREY
APRIL HOWIE
LINDSEY CLARKE
DEAN MARSHALL
MADELINE O’BRIEN TAMESHIA FERGUSON
ARTWORK
BETHANY REDHEAD ANNUM ANWAR
COURTNEY BEVAN
JAMES NYATORO
EMILY HACK
JESSICA STONE
JADE HARDIE
REBEKAH THOMAS
LIVIA BARMBY
ALEXANDRA PARK STEPHANIE LAWRENCE
FASHION
FASHION
SCARLETT MIDDLETON
LAUREN HICKEY
FATIMA RIFAI
CHARLEY CROSS
VYVYAN HSU
ABBIE SIMPSON
NATALIA CRIBB
ELLIE SWIFT
NIKKI TAMATA
RAIYANA SHEIKH
SHELBY MARSHALL
OLIVER LIU
RANJANA RAMESH
REBECCA SARJANTSON
HASHABIAH MUNDLE-SIMPKIN
ANA SANTOS DE SOUSA
SAMUEL LOAT
ANN-MARIE ALLISON
HARRY ZHU
BILLE HOLMES
KEVIN QIN
SAM CHEN XAVIER XU
Contents 1-2
Meet The Team
3
Editors’ Letter
4-7
Left
8
Day In The Life
9-13
Creative Stigma
14-19
Creative Profiles
20-23
Still Lives
24-25
The Inside Info
26-33
Paper
34-35 Dear Reader 36-39 Industry Insight 40
Do You Think You’re Creative?
41
Contributors
editors’ letter
The Oxford dictionary defines creativity as the use of imagination and original ideas to create something, which is inventive, unique, and out of the ordinary. Creativity is invaluable and it is vital to the continued success of the UK economy that this skill does not become forgotten in today’s society. In the eleventh issue of Show Off we delve into the subject of creativity; within education, people, art movements, and the United Kingdom. This issue intends to evoke thought, draw attention to the stigmas that creative students often face, promote understanding of and shout about the creative industries! As a collective group of young creatives based in the North West, we have produced this publication to give you an understanding of just how important we believe creativity is to young people taking the first steps education into a creative career. April, Dean, Holly & Isabelle
L E F T
Photographer: Dave Schofield
ModeL: Kristy Rix
clothinG: UCLan BA (Hons) Fashion Design Students
A day in the Life... Jessica Stone DATE Frriday 15th March 2018
8AM
Check Instagram Get ready for University
9AM
Check University email Stop off at Starbucks for a skinny vanilla latte on way to Uni
10AM
Tutorial with course tutor discussing ideas and initial thoughts on the current brief
11AM
Stay in classroom after tutorial to work through the feedback and look at notes
12PM
Meet with course friends for lunch at the local pub
1PM
Go straight to the salon from Uni Check diary and call any clients back
2PM
First client appointment
3PM 4PM 5PM
Clean makeup brushes ready for tomorrow and close the shop with other colleagues
6PM
Watch the Great British Bake Off with Mum Have dinner with my family
Order lashes
7PM
Order more products for my clients
Going out for drinks with friends Pick out an outfit for tonight Finish off Uni work
8PM
Spend 5 minutes tidying room before getting changed Touch up makeup and curl hair
9PM
Get a taxi into town Withdraw ÂŁ30 Meet friends in cocktail bar
10PM
Get taxi home ready for bed
11PM
Sets alarm for 8:30am Goes to sleep for 12
TO DO LIST
Fill up car Finish Uni work Send reminders to clients I have tomorrow Wash make-up brushes Check Instagram for messages from clients
C S C S
reative
tigma
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“ arry comes home from his job as a financial adviser and walks into his beige apartment and takes off his beige suit. He places it with his other suits that have all the colour variation of black or beige or no, that’s it. Remember, we took away the funding for fashion styling and design! But that’s fine because Barry has no time to think about his suit colour, tonight is a big night for Barry. He is planning on proposing to his girlfriend Barbra. So, he makes his way to Barbra’s beige apartment with a bunch of flowers to ensure a good impression. Oh, no, wait, we cut funding for floristry design. But that’s okay! It’s fine, Barry has a brilliant plan for tonight. They’re going to watch the ballet. Actually, no not the ballet, funding for that was cut. Actually, not any kind of dance, funding was cut for that too. They decide to go to the theatre instead but, musical theatre funding was cut also and even if it wasn’t they cut funding for the live production design so there would be no set to perform on anyway and even if we over-looked that, they cut the funding for screenwriting so they would have nothing to say and while we’re on the topic of screenwriting the other type of screens (movies) are gone too because the funding for acting was also cut. And I’m sure at this point Barry is thinking that’s fine, no actors? No worries! We’ll just go see a kid’s movie, a cartoon one. But sorry Barry, try again, because animation was cut too. At this point, Barry is running out of time so he decides that the evening can’t get any less unromantic, why not just propose right here and now? So, he kneels down in front of Barbra and pulls out a ring. Actually, no, not a ring because, you guessed it, jewellery and object design funding was cut too. Bad luck Barry.”
IVY MULLINS is a 19 year old Australian student who has had enough of the stigma surrounding creative subjects. Ivy wanted to portray to the world what a day in the the life of any individual would be like without creatives in the world. We caught up with Ivy and chatted about her view on the matter.
What gave you the drive to write this article? To be honest, I was sick of people turning their noses up at what I was studying. I’m taking a double degree in law and creative professional writing and I was sick of people saying they didn’t see the point in taking the creative writing part. Then when the Australian Government began to attack the arts sector of Universities it really kicked me to write the article. It just seemed unfair that no other sector suffer ed such a colossal loss to their programmes. Have you ever been offended by what others have said about doing a creative subject and why? For sure. Only because it felt like a direct attack on who I was. When I said I was studying creative writing and people said it was a waste of time, it felt like they were saying something I was so invested in and in love with was stupid. People kept on saying it was ‘just a hobby’ and I’d never make a career out of it but my boyfriend, who is a fantastic football player was never told he should regard the sport as a hobby when he decided to pursue it professionally. Do you think the stigma against creative subjects will ever change and why? The world will become a lot more appreciative of the writers, artists and designers whose jobs stem from creativity and can’t be replaced by a machine.
We found the article on facebook after it went viral. What kind of response did you get towards the article? One minute a few people had commented, then I went to sleep and suddenly it had 20k likes and thousands of shares and comments. I didn’t expect it to blow up like it did. In the end it hit over a million views in about a week. What is your view on the education system when it comes to creative subjects? I think that the education system doesn’t take creative subjects seriously enough. They’re regarded as ‘soft’ subjects and are even weighted differently for scoring here in Australia. (For example, an A+ in drama or art could be equivalent to a B in biology.
“I think the education system doesn’t take creative subjects seriously enough” What do you think is going to happen to creative subjects in the future? I’d hope they get more funding and I’d hope they are appreciated more and regarded with a higher status.
Positive Realities “ It’s good you’re studying a creative subject... that industry is becoming big.”
“ I wish I had that opportunity with my course, it sounds amazing, a whole year of experience before you graduate.”
“ A placement has given me so much in-sight into the industry, I'm honoured to have been given this opportunity with my course.”
“ Fashion Promotion has so much to offer as a course. You can acquire a broad spectrum of industry valued skills.”
“ Never knew UCLan has so many different creative courses such as Fashion, Animation, Graphics and so much more that’s amazing!”
Often people concieve fashion to be superfluous and disconnected from the critical themes of our time. But now creative students and graduates are re-defining fashion. The creative industry generates £84 billion each year in the UK alone, and is a vital aspect of today’s society. Those who work within this vast, ever-growing industry know the extent of how hard you must work to remain in this field. We love and are passionate about this industry and we're not going to let anyone stop us fighting for it!
Negative Stigmas The nosy one- “So what are you actually studying?"...
The flat mate- “What do you do? Draw clothes all day?”
We’ve experienced it. That look of commiseration when you tell them “I study Fashion”. That look as though they pity you, and instantly pass you off asama terialistic, dress making air-head. Students who study creative subjects really do not get half as much credit as they deserve. As fashion students ouselves, we admire those who study dentistry, or bio-chemistry or accountancy, and applaud their determination and drive to pursuing an education in those mind provoking, demanding fields. So why don’t we recieve the same recognition?
Brothers' friend- “HAHAHA, Why don’t you do a proper dregree?”
A friend’s mum- “Fashion degree? What is she doing to do with that...work in Topshop?”
A non-creative student - “What are you going to do with that?”
CP CREATIVE profiles
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Jessica Stone
@jessicastonemakeup
What inspires you?
Social media plays a huge role in my inspiration, due to make up now having such a huge platform on social media.
What made you start this business? I worked for MAC Cosmetics for two years and after deciding I wanted to go back to University to study, I didn’t want to let this skill go, so I decided to do it as a hobby and then as time went on it became a proper business.
What are the 3 main things you have learnt from starting your business? 1. Be yourself. 2. Take constructive criticism as a learning tool.
What are you studying at UCLan?
I'm a second year BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion student.
3. Doing work experience really does help in any industry and shows you are dedicated and want to learn.
What does your creative business involve?
What is the best advice you could give to someone wanting to start their own creative business?
I run a small make up business on the side of University to generate some extra cash whilst pursuing a huge passion of mine.
Before you start, make sure you are 100% in it and going to put your heart and soul into it and honestly, be yourself!
J
Jack Fullard
@chinawhiteindustries @ @c chinawhiteindustries hinawhiteindustries
What are you studying at UCLan? I'm a third year on BA (Hons) Photography.
What made you start up as a freelance photographer? I was just tired of not being myself. Trying to fit in with a world I didn’t belong to, working jobs I hated. So I thought, why not create a job I love? As a result I started China White Industries.
How would you describe the customer that you work with? I think someone who thinks a little outside the box. The first job I landed was in a castle in the South of France, with a load of international models.
What inspires you? Music plays a massive role in drawing inspiration for shoots. Also, my background and experiences are displayed throughout my work and lifestyle.
What are the 3 main things you have learnt from starting up this project? 1. Forget what anyone thinks about you. 2. As much as you try, you cannot and should not try to do everything yourself. 3. If it doesn't scare you then it's not worth doing
What is the best advice you could give to someone wanting to start their own creative project? Welcome failure. When you mess up, and you will do, don't get disheartened and quit. Learn from it, laugh at it and then crack on. Everyone else who is established is stable, you aren't right now and that's ok. They were once where you are now, but they carried on even when everyone was telling them to call it a day. You can manifest whatever you want with your mind. Only if you truly believe in yourself though and whatever it is you're doing. Stay humble whilst continuing to grow because this thing could take you anywhere.
Nyator o James “I can’t fail or take losses just lessons, everything I've done to get to this point has helped me learn how to improve something for the next time round.” What are you studying at UCLan? I'm currently studying BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion.
What does your creative project involve? It’s hard to categorise but Vrede Co is a fashion brand that touches on various parts of day to day life from the caps and jackets to the power banks, which charge mobile devices on the go. We currently have collaborations in the pipeline with illustrators and artists to promote their brand and work.
What inspires you? I am inspired by various aspects of life from news and media to childhood experiences and memories which I feel others might find relatable. I am also inspired by history and culture. Those are the two main aspects that drive my inspiration and I feel I have a voice for people coming from my background who don’t normally have the opportunity to voice their thoughts.
How does your degree influence your project? I have never been academic so I find it rewarding to come and learn skills in an area I am currently trying to become successful in and I continuously express what I learn within my brand on all levels and I feel it’s helped me carefully plan and execute my goals more effectively.
What are the 3 main things you have learnt from starting up this project? 1. I can’t fail or take losses just lessons, everything I've done to get to this point has helped me learn how to improve something for the next time round. I make sure I always take lessons from every experience so when it comes to the design or product I always use past experiences to execute the outcome. 2. Know your strengths and weaknesses. It’s always helped me to know where I'm strong and where I can use help, because using other people's skills have helped me build new relationships.
3. Believe in yourself, I'd probably say I'm a fraction of where I want to be with this brand but before I was even at this stage a lot of people struggled to see my vision or disagreed with how I was trying to run certain aspects of the brand. I think it's finding a balance between having faith in your creative ability and taking constructive feedback.
What is the best advice you could give to someone wanting to start their own creative project? I'd probably say start something you feel strongly passionate about, something you wouldn’t consider work. I would encourage anyone to pursue their dream or develop their skills and talents because there's always brands like Vrede or others which are looking to collaborate or work with various creatives from all platforms.
@vredeco
Laura Jeffers @laurajanefashions
What are you studying at UCLan? I studied BA (Hons) Fashion Design at UCLan and graduated with a firstclass degree in 2016.
How did your degree influence your project? My degree gave me most of the skills I needed to be successful in the industry. I learnt how to pattern cut, toile, improved on my sewing skills, fabric knowledge and I learnt how to think outside of the box. I found my true design aesthetic at University and I loved my course.
What made you start your own fashion label? After graduating from University and job hunting for months, I decided to give my own brand a chance. I had been running an Etsy shop for a year or two, during my placement year and my final year of University, which turned out to be a huge success. Designing and making clothes is my passion and I felt that I'd much rather put 100% into making my business work than settling in a job that may make me feel secure but unhappy.
How would you describe the customer that usually buys your products? I would describe my customers as quirky individuals who like to stand out from the crowd. My designs feature explosions of print and colour which is reflected in the personality of my clients, vibrant and
exciting. I love having an online business, as it means I get customers from all over the world looking to buy my products.
Where do you see your fashion label in 5 years? I would like my business to become my main source of income, I'd like to grow and expand, by employing creative graduates and giving them a chance to express themselves and to learn and grow with me and my brand. I would like to outsource my production to Africa, which will put a whole new dimension on the brand and also help with fair trade and fair wages.
What are the 3 main things you have learnt from starting up this project? 1. Motivation is key. At University, there is the support of tutors and other students but once you leave, you must be your own motivation. The goal needs to be on your mind, you must aspire to do more each day and to set yourself targets as if you were still at University. 2. Don't stop learning. My degree gave me 70% of the skills that I needed to run a successful business but it was up to me to find ways to learn that extra 30%. Every day is a new opportunity to learn, an opportunity to get better at my craft. 3. Believe in yourself – It's really tough being a startup, especially when your whole life has been graded, from primary school ticks to University classifications. Someone once told me that if I am not confident about my work, how can I expect someone else to be? You need to believe in your work for others to see it's potential.
M
What did you study at UCLan?
I studied BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion, I started the course in 2012 and graduated in 2016.
What does your creative project involve?
I'm currently juggling a few different projects, but my main focus at the moment is MAKE LIKE A BANDIT. I draw pet portraits, animal prints and one off freelance pieces. My passion is drawing and illustration and I'm very lucky to have people pay for
something I've drawn. I've also recently launched a collection of wedding stationary on the UK's biggest wedding stationary website and I'm working with a number of startup businesses creating branding, marketing material and doing social media management for a few companies across Lancashire.
What inspires you?
In my last few months at University my tutor showed me Obey: Supply & Demand by Shepard Fairey. To say this book changed my life would be cliché, but it opened my eyes to a different type of marketing. To promote a cause and something you're passionate about instead of a product is such an amazing thing and Obey do it so well. I would say they are my biggest inspiration.
Where do you see your creative project in 5 years?
In five years time, I'll be self-employed working on MAKE LIKE A BANDIT full time. It's as simple as that! I have so many ideas and projects I'm already planning and want to complete, but my main aim is to work with big charities like WWF and Greenpeace.
What are the 3 main things you have learnt from starting up this project?
1. Fear is a good thing. I waited around two weeks between creating my website and making it live. I was terrified no one would like my illustrations or visit my website. Now every week I have orders from people around the world, Australia, Norway, USA, New Zealand. Now I've realised; if it scares you then it's the right choice.
2. Don’t let your financial situation ever stop you from doing anything. When I started MAKE LIKE A BANDIT, I was unemployed with no income, I'd maxed out my overdraft and I had a very small amount saved for a rainy day. I spent near enough my last £400 on setting the business up with no idea if it would be a success. 3. I do believe in karma and what goes around comes around. If you work hard enough and believe that you can do it, then you will.
MADELeINe Grange-glen @makelikeabandit
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Converse Canvas Paint
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Easel
brushes
Photographer: Dave Schofield
Canvas
Pencils
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Sewing Kit
Tape
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Props
Rails
Shoes Sewing
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Euros a r s e d n u Cam o P Watch p a M Dolla Map Passport
Vogue
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Accessorises Notebook Magazines Passport Coins Lipstick Map Map Laptop Vogue
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Coins Dollars s o r Eu Camera Coins
Laptop Newspap Handbag Headphones Star Lipstick Camera Starbucks
Handb Magazines Handba Handcream Sunglasses Laptop Iphone
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Sunglasses Headphones StarbucksLipsti Handcream Newspaper
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the 5 inside info
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The number of jobs in the UK’s creative industries rose by 5% in 2016, compared to the 1.2% increase in the wider UK workforce.
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£87.4bn
UK creative industries generate £87.4bn a year to the UK economy.
1.2%
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The UK is the third largest fashion employer in the EU.
5 2m
UK company WRAP have a sustainable clothing action plan where they bring together forward-thinking organisations from across the clothing supply chain to re-invent how clothes are designed and produced. They help us to re-think how we value clothing by extending the life of clothes; and to re-define what is possible through re-use and recycling.
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6 90% 8 9 10 Ecoluxe London, a not-forprofit platform, supports luxury with ethos through hosting a biannual exhibition during London Fashion Week and showcasing eco-sustainable and ethical designers.
The industry is growing at four times the rate of the UK workforce as a whole.
Almost 2 million people are employed in the UK creative industry.
2.8m
When the 1.8m jobs specifically in the creative industries are added to the number of creative jobs in noncreative organisations, the total UK creative economy accounted for 2.8m jobs.
More than 90% of all MPs polled agree that the UK creative industries are vitally important for future economic growth, the creation of new jobs, and positive perceptions of Brand Britain internationally.
H&M picks up 35 truckloads of clothing a day as part of its inhouse recycling program.
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PAPER PhotographerS: Dean Marshall Dave Schofield
ModeLS: Ernest Angustia Mia Johnson
clothinG: UCLan BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion Students
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Dear Reader…. What does creativity mean to you? Albert Einstein once said, “creativity is intelligence having fun,” and this is one of my all-time favorite quotes. Creativity is the beautiful process of turning your imaginative ideas into reality. Whilst growing up I struggled with the concept of creativity, and what it meant. I couldn’t understand why all I wanted to do was spend all of my time in the art room at school, surrounded by paint, textiles and attached to my camera. In the Academic world creativity often seems to get forgotten.
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I know from my school years that what was seen to be an academic subject such as Mathematics and English Language was considered to be more valuable than the Arts. I was never exceptional when it came to exam results and always fell into the average category, whilst my friends gained the As and the A*s. I couldn’t understand why that wasn’t me, I tried just as hard, so why wasn’t I gaining the high grades? It took one enthusiastic art teacher to make me realise why; I was encouraged to attend an art class after school.
It just so happened that the class was doing Life drawing. I was terrified – I had never drawn a person properly in my life! As soon as I started to draw, I was taken over with excitement and joy, I didn’t want to leave. He sat with me as I drew and at the end he said, “that wasn’t as bad as you thought was it? That’s a piece of art, make sure you keep that”. From this one experience I knew what creativity was and I knew it was a big part of me. I recently came across an article in the Telegraph called ‘Ignore creative subjects at your peril’, by Anne Carlisle where she comments, “studying a creative subject means you’ll develop the skills required to join a sector that’s in great shape and providing more job opportunities than ever before”.
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Anne also talks about the stigma behind creative subjects, explaining that when the creative arts or creative industries are mentioned, not many people tend to think of crucial areas such as advertising, film production or product design.
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it so important that creativity is encouraged within children, Growing up it’s it allows children to develop individuality, confidence and personality. I love a quote by Isadora Duncan a great dancer of the 20th century who wondered how many parents realise that by the education they are giving their children, they are only driving them into the, "common place and depriving them of the chance of doing something original".
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Sarah Mower, a member of the British Fashion Council and Vogue critic is a great example of a professional creative, fighting for creative subjects that are being dropped from the education system. A recent example of this is how Art History has been removed from A Level choice. Sarah explained that the definition of Art History being seen as a soft subject is ludicrous and misunderstands the subject, which is important to the economy, culture and well-being of our country.
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Creativity is different within everyone, it’s what you want it to be. As a society we should get over the idea that creativity is innate and that only the very talented should pursue it as a career, we should cultivate creativity in every child, whether it’s in fashion, photography, design, or any form of art. It’s so important that all creative people out there hold on to that spark of creativity inside and let it take over; allow it to give you the confidence to explore your dreams and ambitions.
Yours sincerely, April Howie
Industry Insight
A placement opportunity is a great time for students to apply their knowledge gained from University out in the real world. It offers first-hand experience of working for a brand, which is a great foot in the door and an amazing opportunity to build up your CV. Working in the creative industries, it’s important to have the skills to back you up, but also networking is a key skill to develop and a placement gives you the chance to create your own network of contacts in the industry. Within BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion, we can choose to take an optional Sandwich year in industry. We caught up with those preparing for this experience, in the middle of it and those who are back to University this year to get the scoop on what you need to know about placements.
What placement are you doing currently? Where are you based? I am currently on placement as an e-commerce assistant at Rebellious Fashion who are an online retail company based in Manchester. They sell fast fashion and are aimed towards young females between ages of 15-25. What have you found most rewarding and challenging so far? I really enjoy how fast paced this industry is. Rebellious are growing really quickly and since joining I have watched the team and the business grow immensely. I love that the business is only young, as it means I get a much more hands on experience and they really value and take on board my ideas and opinions. I really like the shoot process, helping to style the models and then editing and retouching the images. It can be quite stressful but also really fun and creative. The thing I find most challenging about my role is probably the spreadsheets, as maths and formulas aren’t my strongest point and I hadn’t really expected to come across this in the fashion industry. It’s been a really big learning curve but being able to really understand stock levels, orders and consumer behaviour is actually really interesting! What have you learnt on your placement year so far? I have learnt a lot about how an online business works. As the company is small I get to see the whole process from buying, styling, shooting, website merchandising and writing copy. Right through to orders, deliveries and returns. I’ve been able to learn skills across lots of roles that working as an intern for a bigger business might not have allowed me to do.
Chloe Edwards Chloe Edwards
How would you say your placement compares to your expectations of it that you had before this year? I think my placement has panned out a lot differently to how I expected. When I originally got my Internship I hadn’t planned on staying with them for too long as I didn’t see myself in a role in e-commerce. However taking this role was probably one of the best things I did. It’s taught me lots about the industry that Uni isn’t able to alone and really given me chance to get an insight into fast fashion. I love working for Rebellious and I’m proud of the direction the business is heading in and I feel that all the team have a direct impact on it. I’ve been asked to stay on with them and probably will do for the majority of my year out in industry. What things did you have to consider before going on your placement year? Truthfully I think finding a placement is really difficult. I think a lot of the process of this is up to you and if you don’t actively look or put yourself out there, then you are not going to find a role you enjoy. What do you enjoy the most? I really enjoy doing the copy for the website, slogans and emails. When I joined, the website was a little formal, dated and didn’t really suit the customer but since working here I’ve worked on updating the language style and the way the site reads, to make it more fun and relatable to our target consumer.
Livia Barmby Livia Barmby
What type of placements have you applied for so far? I have applied for one placement so far, which is a social media role. I am really interested in working in this particular area, so e-commerce or social media are the type of jobs I’ll be on the look out for. What are you hoping to gain from your placement year? I am hoping to gain a lot more confidence and knowledge from my placement year. Working in the industry sounds so daunting but hopefully after a year of practise I’ll be ready! How do you feel your placement will aid you during your 4th year and upon graduation? I think after my placement, starting 4th year will be a lot easier because of the determination I’ll have for wanting to finish and do well. I definitely think once I’ve had the taste of working in an area I enjoy and love, it will give me the strength to work harder than ever to get the best grades I can, which will then aid me in looking for a graduate job.
What are you looking forward to about placement year? The thing I am looking forward to the most is learning. I can’t wait to gain more skills, but also expand skills I have. What made you decide to take a placement year? At first I wasn’t so keen on the idea and throughout 1st year I was set that I wasn’t going to do a placement. But, after starting the 2nd year and realising all the benefits that come with doing a placement and all the work experience job roles available, I felt that it was the right thing for me to do. Why did you choose the places you chose? I have applied for an internship at In The Style so far,the job role being a social media assistant. I chose to apply for this because I think social media is the future and nowhere near as a big as it will be. Fashion is everywhere on social media nowadays, especially with the likes of Instagram creating jobs for bloggers. I’m so fascinated by it all, so being able to learn more about how a brand uses these platforms and help them do it will be amazing.
Brittany Doran Brittany Doran
What are the benefits of taking a placement year? There are so many benefits to taking a placement year, our industry very much relies on connections and networking, therefore I found it especially helpful to meet an array of people from different areas and backgrounds that I have now connected with and could help me with future career aspirations. Furthermore it is just a great way to extend your brand knowledge and practical skills that you have learnt throughout your first and second years at University. You gain confidence in your area of expertise and it’s a great way to socialise with people of similar interests to yourself. It’s also great to learn new skills that you can utilise in your final year on the course! What advice would you give to current students who are thinking about doing a placement year? Just go for it! Really there is absolutely nothing to lose, you are being given the chance to take a year and just completely refine yourself as a person and the areas you want to work in. In fashion and most career paths you’ll need experience anyway, so it’s better to do this as part of your degree. Taking the year out was easily one of the best decisions I ever made in terms of my work ethic and motivation, I have returned to University wanting to better myself and my work more than ever.
What was the key bit of information that helped you decide on taking a placement year? I think I was inspired by previous years I had seen undertaking such amazing roles on placements mostly but for the personal experience too. With a degree like Fashion Promotion, in order to understand the context of work you are creating I think you have to work within it, therefore spending a year in industry is the best possible way to do this. How has the transition from placement back to University been? At times difficult, when you are on placement year it is mostly a 9-5 day therefore you fall into a routine. I would say it took me probably about 2 weeks to fully get back into the swing of University life again. Although my quality of work since transitioning from industry back to University I feel has advanced massively. How are the skills you developed during placement aiding you in your last year of study? Really well! I have learned so many new techniques and tricks on how to design my work that I would not of had a clue how to undertake before placement. I think you gauge a deeper understanding of brand identities on placement year too, which will inevitably benefit you when designing your final campaign in 4th year. DID YOU ENJOY YOUR PLACEMENT YEAR? One million percent yes. The skills and industry know edge you will gain from taking a placement year are absolutely invaluable and put you in such a stronger position for the final year of your degree.
What kind of things do you need to prepare for? Prepare your portfolios well and make sure they reflect you and your work style correctly, this is the first thing an employer will see from you and shines a light on your personality. Make sure in the interview you present yourself well, do your thorough brand research and always have questions to ask. Make yourself stand out by sending press packs to companies you would love to work with, you’ve got nothing to lose! Be fearless and put yourself out there, our course educates us in so many areas of the industry, we have the advantage to take on a number of different roles, acknowledge this and be confident within your abilities. Employers will love to know you are such an diverse student!
What Kind Of creative are you?
Ever wondered what kind creative you are? Take this quiz to find out!
Visuals
Do you find it easier to think through visuals or words?
Words
Would you rather a holiday abroad or a staycation? Staycation
Abroad Seaside breaks or City breaks?
camping
art gallery
musEUM cultured creative You’re a cultured creative! You love art and exploring new locations, whether that be at home or away.
books
Films
Camping or glamping?
seaside
city Museum or Art gallery?
Do you prefer films or books?
TV
glamping Do you go with the flow or are you organised? organised
tidy
go with the flow
organised creative You’re an organised creative! You dont like to be under pressure, so you love to use lists and plans for your creative ideas to come to life.
TV or Music?
Music Are you a tidy or untidy person?
untidy raw creative You’re a raw creative! You eat, sleep and breathe creavitivity, you love to get your hands dirty for your ideas to flourish.
Contributers with thanks to... Dave Schofield Ernest Angustia Kirsty Rix Mia Johnson Marisa Crane Brittany Doran Chloe Edwards Jack Fullard Laura Jeffers Madeleine Grange-Glen James Nyatoro Ivy Mullins Leanne Unsworth Samantha Grayer Hollie Spade
Contact BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion Art, Design & Fashion University of Central Lancashire Preston, Lancashire PR1 2HE +44(0)1772 893188 www.uclan.ac.uk @uclanfashionpromotion
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