Digital Innovation Award

The Digital Innovation Award offers a £3000 award to a emerging or exceptional artist who is d/Deaf, Disabled or Neurodiverse to pursue their creative ideas inspired by digital technology. The award is funded by the Santander Foundation as part of the Digital Horizon programme.

Our Digital Innovation Award 2023 winner was Stuart Robinson, a musician, audio engineer, composer, sound designer and technician from Bangor. In his own words, Stuart told us what the award meant to him:

”I applied for this award as I wanted the opportunity to learn and develop my skills regarding audio-visual content and explore new software, broaden my skill set and create abstract work.

Because of the financial support this award gave me, I was able to spend time learning and experimenting with Max MSP. I learned a lot about the software, developed coding skills and created new sound work. I also experimented and explored other software such as Houdini, Pure Data and TouchDesigner which I really enjoyed.

I would encourage others who are thinking of applying for the award to focus on something they are interested in and passionate about, as this will help motivate you when you reach challenging points. It's a great opportunity to learn new skills and explore areas related to your current expertise.”

The Digital Innovation Award 2024

Open for applications in October /November 2023 and close in December 2023. It is an application based process.

To enquire, email administration@universityofatypical.org putting ‘Digital Innovation Award’ in the subject line.

universityofatypical.org

National Lottery Awards 2023

Friday 12th May from 10.30am-4.30pm

‘Digital painting and mood-boards using Procreate’ with Joel Simon.

The University of Atypical for Arts and Disability is grateful for the continued support from our principal core funder The National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland thanks to The National Lottery players.

#NLAAtypical

Vote for University of Atypical in the National Lottery Awards 2023!

Discover new ways to research and develop a visual art piece. Joel will demonstrate how to create mood boards using the program ‘Procreate’ on an iPad. iPads can be provided or bring your own

Who is this for?

The UofA team is excited to be a finalist in the The National Lottery Awards 2023. We are competing against 16 other projects from across the UK for the title of National Lottery Project of the Year. We know we are up against some fantastic competition but we are asking for you to vote for us if you like what we do.

Suitable for visual artists working in a wide range of mediums: illustrators, painters, sculptors, textile designers and others. No experience necessary.

Who is leading this Masterclass?

Vote for us using the hashtag #NLAAtypical

Or this link www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk/awards Or by scanning the QR code

Joel Simon is a professional visual artist based in Belfast since 1995; he is also an amputee. His work spans many visual mediums including painting, animation and film. His work has won awards internationally and been seen on platforms such as BBC ARTS, Cinemagic and as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. He set up the animation studios Flickerpix Animations in 2003 and Hola Lola universityofatypical.org

It's given me the tools to go off and get started. I've more personal research in my own creative area to do and then I can embrace the technical tools that were demonstrated in a very supportive and hands-on environment.

What our attendees said about our Masterclasses

It gave me new inspiration to play more music , record and develop which is in essence real therapy for me. I know now that with a bit of investment in simple Digital equipment that Peter introduced us to I could record and play and enjoy making music

I got so much from this masterclassmeeting like-minded people and having the opportunity to network. The environment felt friendly and inviting so I felt more comfortable sharing my neurodiversity with others.

Actually finding out I wasn't the only autistic one felt great! That gave me a chance to talk to others who have had similar experiences especially as an artist. I didn't feel I had to mask