Is Newcastle fine art any good?

I finally got an offer today, 2 weeks after my interview! To be honest i was sure that I was going to be rejected and was so gobsmacked when I got the email. Conditional on Foundation pass , no mention of a-levels

Like Dale, I was asked why I wanted to study at Newcastle. I told them that I loved how the course places so much emphasis on Art History, so much more so than any of the other courses that I have applied to. After all , Art today has its roots in Historical works , so its only natural to learn about its evolution. I think that course sounds so interesting and different to many other Fine Art degrees.

They asked me to briefly discuss my portfolio, choosing a couple of pieces of work to elaborate upon.

All in all it was a nice interview, nothing too formal. They made me feel at ease and in the end it lasted for 25 minutes mainly due to my gob getting carried away lol.

Good luck for those still with interviews to come.

Hi, I've got my interview at Newcastle for Fine Art next week. Just wondering if you could give a bit more information about the interview? What questions did they ask you regarding art history? Thanks

I got an offer from Newcastle after an absolutely terrible interview at ABB which i was so suprised/happy about!

I had my heart set on St Martins at first just due to its reputation really but after hearing about the amount of people that drop out because St Martins try to change their art styles and hearing so many stories about unfair applications I completely went off the idea of going there.

I loved Newcastle so much! It seemed like such a friendly city and there seems so much to do! The art department is in a really nice old building all higldy pigldy and messy and cute, just seems like such an inspiring place to make work

I'm from the Midlands so (fingers crossed) if I get my grades it will me a big move for me, but after only visiting 3 times I feel completely comfortable with it

Yeah I agree! A boy who was a few years above me quit about 6 months into his first year because they were trying to change his style of art but now he was a place at slade so fair play to him!

Hopefully I'll see you too!
how did your interview go? mine was awful I was so suprised they gave me an offer!

For BA, I don't seem to see a lot of people applying there, everyone's applying to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Slade, Ruskin, St Martins etc. Is Newcastle not up there?

After reading that I'm even more excited now!
My only worry about the course is these art history exams
From the little bit I've done on foundation I've enjoyed but we never looked into history as intensly as you would at uni.
Howve you found the art history? And what have you been looking at in the history lectures?

Well I've really enjoyed my art history essays from foundation and they were 2000words!
Also how's your time table been each week? How often are you in each day?

I only ask because I have a job and I'm a bit worried about availability etc
But it sound better than I thought timetable wise.
Also what have your projects been about in your first year? What where they based on.
And did you get a project for the summer before you started uni?
Sorry for all the Q's

mm it can be as full-on as you make it tbh. Keep your job as it'll be so useful for extra spending money.

Our first year, briefly has been like this:
you get split into 3 groups/ 3 studios and then alternate between these things...
3 week painting project (can be on anything you want, they want to see lots of experimentation and exploration. It helps to have a theme of sorts)
3 week printing (you learn and create prints using etching (soft, hard, aquatint, sugar lift) and screen printing techniques- you then create a 'final' or a few pieces that are more finished e.g. I made a some polished prints and then a sculpture using my prints)
3 week sculpture (this was the best for me as I was used to the course now and made friends etc... not sure how to explain but as with all the projects they want to see exploration/ curiosity/ ingenuity/ just be free - this is what I created for this if you're interested http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-4D2l1TILU )

then... we had christmas holidays- during this you have a project, create 12 postcards

then January we had exam time/ a week of workshop (I signed up for bookbinding which was surprisingly awesome, made leather books for free)

Then February you have a book project, I think this was 3 weeks... create something which is a book or vaguely related to a book e.g. sculptural... There were 3 project 'titles' you could chose from but tbh you could do anything you wanted. During this time I think we started essay, can't remember..

Then after book project we had a 12 week, personal project which was the best! Again, there is a running theme, you are free to do it on anything you are inspired by or intrigued to try out... had to have some sort of 'finished piece or pieces' at the end. People worked in paint, print, installation, film.. all sorts of media and cross over of media are encouraged. I produced collages and a film.

If this helps, this is my flickr site. I've uploaded all the art I have produced during my time at Newcastle year 1 from start to finish...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/maria_abbott_art/
the album called 'biker wall' is my personal project..
The site will just explain that you can do whatever you please, just don't be afraid to experiment. We don't get project titles, it's more self initiated..

and nope, they didn't give us a project during the summer. It would probably help to explore some ideas during the summer so that you could base your 3 week project perhaps on something you'd thought of before. Due to the time limit we had to be pretty decisive on what we were going to create, otherwise you would run out of time to full engage with the topic..

I heard that they may add another 3 week project to the first semester but it was only a rumour so I'm not sure exactly
If you're from Newcastle, you should go to the Hatton Gallery, which is in Newcastle Universities Quadrangle area and visit the degree show (it would be worth it as the Hatton Gallery is within the fine art department itself, so the degree show is spread though out the building - you can have a cheeky look at all the studios, whilst seeing what the 4th years produced). It's a good show!

well luckily im from Sunderland (right next to newc) so ive been to the Hatton a few times!
im glad it seems to very self initiated, and less forced.
i also keep a little moleskine that's all for ideas i have so i list everything so i guess that will definitely come in handy!
also love the sound of the book binding workshop! sounds cooooool :P

and i love your miners work, very much the style im into
very impressed by your Byker wall piece to, love the video that played onto the sculpture!

i keep meaning to go back to my flickr, the only place i have work is on tumblr (http://tinyurl.com/bngjv28) that's a quick link if you're interested i have like three pieces on there, and its my most recent work so would love to hear some criticism if you have any

but yes! thanks for all the responses.
seriously looking forward to starting Newcastle this September.

I am just finishing my first year at Newcastle and, quite honestly, it has been THE best experience of my life; a feeling which many of my peers reciprocate. Artistically and socially. There is a real sense of community within Newcastle art school. Lecturers are very personable and encourage everyone to talk about their practise. The course is intensive but invigorating for anyone who wants to grab this opportunity and squeeze it of all it's creative juices (only description I can think of!) For example, my work is in a two month exhibition this summer, via a competition that I would not have heard about unless it hadn't been forwarded by our helpful lecturers.
It is an academic course (2 essays/ 2 exams a year in art history - so good for development) and is respected due to this - gives you an extra 'edge'. Plus when you have to write your dissertation, it will be less overwhelming as you have had regular practise in essay writing for two years.
They also run a LifeWorkArt module which is great fun - this term, alongside our practise, we produced a art project which we then presented in the Baltic Gallery (main contemporary gallery in n.castle) and our work is now in their archive to be viewed.

I came straight from A Level myself but have never felt intimidated as the atmosphere is the healthy kind of competitiveness (not the 'keeping everything secret and never sharing ideas due to fear of copying' competitiveness) I have grown so much artistically, Newcastle encourages students to experiment with all medium - a student should never limit themselves as just a 'painter' for example. You can dabble in video, sculpture, sound, installation (the more adventurous the better) plus the equipment is top-notch for printmaking. Also, there's been a huge re-vamp of the art department so better studio facilities/ even more equipment. Studios in the old section are beautiful and have great views over the quadrangle greenery.
There are so many opportunities in Newcastle, as long as you are a motivated person and willing to embrace them, you'll get so much from this course, I cannot recommend it higher!

Sorry to blab on but I have finished the year and am missing being in the studio/ surrounded by so many friends like crazy! I am exhausted after this last intense term but am now wanting more... There's loads to say about the course but I don't want to sound too much like a newcastle ambassador..

If you have any questions fire away