NEWCASTLE SCHOOL OF ART

1838 - ?

The first School of Art in Newcastle was established in 1838. It subsequently became part of Armstrong College, followed by being part of King's College, University of Durham, and then it became part of the newly established University of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1963. Throughout, it has maintained an excellent reputation as one of the UK's leading centres for art education. The first BA degree in Fine Art in the UK was awarded here in 1927. The art school also houses the Hatton Gallery, a world-renowned gallery which has one of the most iconic artworks of the 20th century in its collection, the 'Elterwater Merz Barn', the final work of the German Dadaist Kurt Schwitters (1887–1948). The art school was a key player in radical developments in art education in the 1950s and 1960s which led to the development of the course known as Basic Design and the subsequent revolution across art education in the UK. Newcastle is also particularly associated with the development of Pop Art in the UK, as outlined in the essay by Gill Hedley (1953-) for the exhibition 'Pioneers of Pop', held in the Hatton Gallery. Many distinguished artists have come through Newcastle University and continue to do so, either as students or as teachers. The list includes Roy Ascott, Rita Donagh (1939-), Noel Armstrong Forster (1932-2007), Sir Lawrence Burnett Gowing (1918-1991), Richard Hamilton (1922-2011), Susan Hiller (1940-2019), Mali Morris (1945-), Victor Pasmore (1908-1998), Sarah Pickstone (1965-), Sean Scully (1945-), Phoebe Unwin (1979-) and Mary Webb. Other Suffolk artists who were tutors or were instructed at Newcastle include Georgina Barclay, Geoffrey David Baverstock, Paul Becker, George Washington Brownlow, Henrietta Jordan, Niels Møller Lund, David Parsons, George Robert Rushton, David Spiller and Hilli Thompson.
Website: https://www.ncl.ac.uk