20th Century Art & Design students win award for research
University College Falmouth students, Ruth Olver and Mark Hobbs, are this year’s joint winners of the Falmouth Decorative and Fine Art Society Award, for their exceptional dissertation proposals.
The annual award of £500 is presented to students on the College’s PgDip/MA in 20th Century Art & Design, whose dissertation proposal is judged by representatives from the College and the Society to be the most original and most likely to make a significant contribution to the study of art and design history.
Ruth Olver won the prize for her dissertation proposal entitled Images of New Soviet Woman by Female Artists in Soviet Socialist Realist Art. Ruth focused on the Stalinist period, comparing images of women in paid industrial and agricultural employment. She partly attributes the influence of her ancestry in her selection of dissertation subject.
“My grandmother was Russian,” says Ruth, “so in a sense, I do feel some form of personal affiliation with my subject matter and a desire to understand it and the country that produced it.”
Fellow student Mark Hobbs’ winning dissertation proposal travels deep into the heart of a Berlin bustling with modernisation. Entitled Berlin Dada: Montage and Modernity, Mark will explore how the Berlin Dadaists interpreted the processes of modernity in the modern city using montage between 1916 and 1920.
Ruth will use her share of the prize money to fund a trip to the School of Slavonic and East European Studies to further her dissertation studies, whilst Mark will visit libraries and collections in Berlin, to further his research towards his proposed doctorate in the subject that begins this autumn.
“This generous award opens up exciting possibilities for postgraduate students on the Masters course in 20th Century Art & Design at University College Falmouth,” says Course Leader, Fiona Hackney. “It not only provides them with a real opportunity to produce original work but also endorses the value of student research, and we thank the Falmouth Decorative and Fine Art Society for their continued interest and support,” she adds.
“We are delighted with our continuing involvement with University College Falmouth,” continues Chairman of the Falmouth Decorative and Fine Art Society, David Peters, “and our members are pleased that prize winners find our award of such benefit in enabling them to fulfil or extend their research programmes.”
PgDip/MA in 20th Century Art & Design is a popular part-time course at University College Falmouth that explores the last 100 years of art and design in one evening session per week. The course is taught by experts in their fields and no prior knowledge is necessary. It is designed to fit in with people’s busy lives and attracts students of all ages and backgrounds.
For further information about PgDip/MA in 20th Century Art & Design: Histories & Theories at University College Falmouth, please contact Admissions on 01326 211077, email admissions@falmouth.ac.uk or visit www.falmouth.ac.uk/courses.
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For further information about this press release, please contact Jilly Easterby, Public Relations Officer, University College Falmouth, Woodlane, Falmouth, Cornwall TR11 4RH, Telephone: 01326 211077, Fax: 01326 212261, Email: jilly.easterby@falmouth.ac.uk
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