Final year students from Cardiff Metropolitan University’s School of Art and Design are turning the capital into Wales’ biggest street gallery to mark the launch of their summer degree show.
More than 400 students will exhibit work from a range of disciplines including animation, architecture, fine art, fashion and product design. This annual showcase will be held virtually for the second year in a row due to the ongoing coronavirus restrictions.
As Wales begins to ease its rules further, this year’s event will blur the lines between virtual and reality, turning the city into a free modern art gallery. Popular city-centre and suburban advertising spots will be transformed into exhibits and digital entry points.
Work from artists, makers and designers will be accompanied by interviews, podcasts and live talks in a curated ‘online festival of creativity’ – with a taste of the show available on poster sites across the city. From busy main streets and around unexpected corners, work ranging from conceptual wheelchair designs and traditionally made ceramics to upcycled fashion and lighting inspired by nature will feature on some of Cardiff’s iconic poster sites.
Award-winning work, including Thomas Salkeld’s innovative ‘Smart Wheel’ and creative responses to working from home will lead the city-wide installation, showcasing innovations and traditional practices from one of Cardiff’s oldest academic Schools.
Dean of Cardiff School of Art and Design, Professor Olwen Mosely, said: “I’m delighted to be presenting this year’s show virtual and across our city.
“The creativity shown this year is even more remarkable given the testing circumstances our students have found themselves in. The resilience and adaptability you’ll see in this year’s work shows that creativity can take many forms, yet in all its mediums it remains a place for people to express themselves, help one another and improve the world around them through ingenuity, creativity and vision.”
The Cardiff School of Art and Design Show 2021 is available from 9 to 16 June at csadshow.uk. A selection of the work will be available across the city at major poster sites across the city.
