AA2A students

4 Art and Design students discussed their time on an AA2A course, where they come from and what they're doing now. 

James Lockhart

James Lockhart, a photographer who is interested in fine art. Lockhart became interested in photography in 2000, he studied at West Cheshire College on a media studies course. During his time here he became friends with a fine artist and start to document how the friend worked. He then went on to study photography on a part time course for 2 years. After this course he moved to the University of Chester on the Fine Art/Photography as a mature student, he graduated in 2010 and went on to do a teaching degree for a year. Moving on from the teaching degree he did multiple residencies all around the country, where he ended up in Liverpool, which he then decided he would study a masters at Liverpool John Moores. 

James has studied on the AA2A course three times, he has found them really helpful and made him understand his practice, which is sourcing information and changing its message. 

Emma Grzonkowski

Emma Grzonkowski, a portrait painter who studied at the University of Chester, graduated around 11 years ago. Her route was slightly different, she went down a commercial route and started working for galleries, selling her work onto them. She worked in this way from 11 years and as of the last 6 months she has gone self employed. She has studied on the AA2A course and learned photography which is where her most recent project has come from. 

Sophie Bullock

Sophie Bullock studied fine art in Birmingham and graduate in 2012. After graduation her and some friends off her course set up a studio where you were able to network, work if you were a recent graduate. A turning point in her life was in 2015 where she was able to collaboration and work on interactive art work which was playful. She is interested in how the audience is able to interact with the work. Collaborating with other artist, scientist, technologist etc has been a very large part of her practice and given her multiple opportunities. She has worked on multiple residencies, which have enable her to expand her skills and learn new ways of working with technology. She has now decided to study a masters in Art, Health and Social change. Sophie says that the AA2A has been really helpful for her to understand her art practice and where she wants to go within her practice.

Claire

Claire is an older artist who started out teaching textiles at a high school, then moved onto teaching adult literacy, which she was able to do via her art. After this she took retirement and moved back to art so that she could express herself. She went back to university on a masters course to study textiles and print. She says that she learned a lot on the AA2A course, she was able to work on a lot of community based projects and help with teaching through art. At the moment as she is unable to carry on with projects she is making masks and scrubs for the NHS as she has the skills to do so. But then for her personal projects she is just using materials she has around, at the moment she is working with sewing ivy together because she keeps cutting it down in the garden. Claire expressed that we can still be creative with anything we have around the home.