Students celebrate at creative summer show

Friday 7 June saw final year students from some of Solent University, Southampton’s creative courses celebrate their unique final major projects at the annual Summer Degree Show. Course and industry awards were presented, students networked with industry professionals, families and friends were welcomed, and smiles and hugs were in abundance throughout the evening. It was a fantastic event, celebrating the culmination of three years of hard work by our tremendously talented students.

Sustainability and the natural environment were hot topics throughout all courses with sustainable fashion, fashion media, architecture, design and art exploring and portraying a conscientious narrative. Other themes included identity, genderless clothing, mental health and wellbeing, poverty, empowerment, family connections, and the addiction and influence of social media, to name just a few. Students used different mediums from AI and the latest technology to traditional practices and recycled materials for their projects.

Some courses awarded prizes to star students on the night, including:

• Emma Fall, Student of the Year, BA (Hons) Fashion Management with Marketing
• Sarah Harvey, SBID Award, BA (Hons) Interior Design
• Nikola Kowaliszyn, SBID Award, BA (Hons) Interior Design Decoration
• Isobelle Bull, Linden Homes Award, BA (Hons) Interior Design Decoration

Several students have also been shortlisted for awards during Graduate Fashion Week, and we wish them luck for (hopefully) some further celebrations later this week.

Head of Department for Art and Music, Brent Meheux, said “The event is one of the highlights of the year for the department as we have a chance to see all the creative final projects together. Our students work hard to get to this point and choose their projects following their interests, practices and inspirations they’ve experienced over the course of their degree. They’re all so talented and some have already exhibited their work externally, received national awards or received job offers for when they graduate. We’re all just so extremely proud of how they’ve developed and what they’ve achieved.”

With their final projects under their belt, the evening was also an opportunity to network with industry professionals. Ben Sharpe, Senior Graphic Designer at Mitchell and Sons, and Solent alumni has attended every event since graduating. Now a working professional himself he uses the event to head hunt the next generation of designers: “Since graduating I have made a conscious effort to keep an eye on the next wave of design talent. I can trust the calibre of student at Solent and use the event to network.”

Family members were also in attendance to support their children, as they have continually done so over the last three years. One parent commented on how their child had developed and changed so much over the last three years having found their calling. Another reminisced how the family helped their daughter carry a mattress onto a cliff top in the cold, with Mum wearing a lampshade on her head for her daughter’s project. Love and support come in many forms, and the event showed us this through multiple actions.

Hearing how family, friends, industry contacts, and staff were so proud of the students, we’d like to add that we’re proud of them too and thank everyone involved for their support in getting them over the line.

Some shows are on until 14 June, so don’t miss out.

Courses that took part in this fabulous showcase of student work include: BSc (Hons) Architecture and Design Technology, BA (Hons) Fashion Design, BA (Hons) Fashion Media, BA Hons) Fashion Management with Marketing, BA (Hons) Fashion Photography, BA (Hons) Fashion Styling and Creative Direction, BA (Hons) Fine Art, BA (Hons) Graphic Design, BA (Hons) Illustration, BA (Hons) Interior Design, BA (Hons) Interior Design Decoration, BA (Hons) Make-up and Hair Design, BA (Hons) Photography, BA (Hons) Prosthetics and Special Effects

Student work will be added to the course pages shortly, so watch this space.