MA Design (Textiles)*
MA Design (Textiles) immerses you in the research, application and production of textiles within the fashion design, interior design and craft industries. You will have the opportunity to focus on either structured or printed textiles, including both traditional techniques as well as emerging techniques using bio-based materials, non-extractive methods and digital 3D printing technologies.
<p dir="ltr">The course builds upon your existing study or industry experience to teach you a research-led, studio-based investigation of the current production methods and creative approaches to the art and science of textiles, equipping you with the historical and practical knowledge to work within a creative sector that interfaces with a large variety of contemporary industries. Whether you are a small-scale studio designer or have the ambition to disrupt the existing textile industries through the development of innovative manufacturing protocols or material processes, the course curriculum will encourage you to uncover your personal objectives, and allow you to tailor your research within a broad range of options.<br /></p>
<p>Working within the context of a rich programme of visiting specialists and local and international entrepreneurs, you will gain critical understanding of how contemporary textile design and manufacture are bridging ancient techniques and emerging technologies to create novel cross-disciplinary careers. The challenge for textile designers to find more sustainable solutions to textile waste and toxicity toward an ethos of a more a circular and ethical design process, is supported through your access to the university’s Natural Dye Lab and Biomaterials Lab, which offer an opportunity to develop new skills and understanding of the structure, chemistry and fabrication of textiles. You will be encouraged to develop original expertise and thorough knowledge of the fibre behaviour and to explore the design potential of a range of textile materials, from industry standard to planet-conscious alternatives that are equally beautiful.</p>
<p>Your MA study of textile design will benefit from the opportunity to participate in the university’s Making Futures Research Group (MFRG), which examines how traditional cultures of making might exist in future contexts through the use of emerging practices, materials and technologies. The MFRG is a coalition of postgraduate students and academic faculty linked to Making Futures®, our international research platform which seeks to situate material cultures and material knowledge at the centre of the many critical issues facing global consumer society, including how we might move beyond mass consumption towards an inclusive, regenerative economy capable of supporting social well-being and enabling more resilient communities.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Through the course you will have access to wide range a state of the art facilities and resources to develop your work, including our Materials Lab, Sew Lab, Embroidery Studio, Tufting Studio, Knitting Machines, CAD Lab, and FabLab, which was the first of its kind in the UK and now part of a network of over 2700 Fab Labs around the world. </p>
<p dir="ltr">We are committed to developing ethical, sustainable design practices as outlined in our <a href="https://www.aup.ac.uk/strategic-plan">Strategic Vision</a> and this ethos is embedded in all MA courses.<br /></p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>We place you at the crossroad of material traditions and futures</strong>. Design is an expanding area of practice that encompasses both industry standards and an exciting exploration of new design thinking seeking to build more sustainable businesses and ethical creative practices. Our MA Design (Textiles) places you at the forefront of the creative and societal forces that are challenging design norms in order to reimagine production and consumption for a changing world through new modes of practice. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>A pro-active, Interdisciplinary community</strong>. New ideas and design practices do not develop in isolation. You come to university to be challenged, supported and to take risks in a context that will inspire you to innovate and understand design as an active process of inquiry into market demands, new technologies, transforming supply chains and challenges to our environment. The course encourages conceptual exploration and hands-on iteration through multiple disciplines and cultures of making. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Accelerated personal development through guided, practice-led research</strong>. We believe design is a research-led enquiry into human relationships with each other and our planetary ecosystem. This enquiry is pursued through an iterative, material-led examination of the links between human need, human behaviour and human community, leading to new insights and solutions. Your personal learning is accelerated through common units navigated via your individual discipline and professional objectives. </p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>World-class workshops and facilities</strong>: During your time on the course, you will have access to one of the most diverse and spacious ecosystems of workshops, studios and labs known in a contemporary art and design school. Our FabLab is the first of its kind in the UK and gives you access to state-of-the-art resources for developing 21st century skills that will prepare you for leading new design methods and practices, making you adept at navigating design’s complex material and digital interface.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Sustainable ethos and specialist knowledge</strong>: Built into our Postgraduate programme is an emphasis on the sustainable, non-extractive and regenerative approaches to working with materials, which not only provides a meaningful link between the past and the future of design, but puts you at the forefront of contemporary design thinking aimed at developing new, more sustainable industries. We provide an opportunity to develop specialist practices that give you the tools and knowledge to contribute to a growing design sector focused on building a circular economy.</p>
<p>Arts University Plymouth graduates are offered a <strong>discount of 15% on Masters programme fees</strong>, regardless of when they studied with us previously. The discount applies if you studied on one of our pre-degree, foundation or undergraduate programmes.</p>
<p>MA applicants are normally expected to have an undergraduate degree at 2:2 or above. However, the strength of your creative practice and other forms of experience will be taken into account at the interview stage and we encourage you to start a conversation with us.</p>
<p>Your portfolio should give us an indication of the work that you have made, organised or been involved in. For our postgraduate arts, craft and design courses, we expect to see examples of work you have created. <br /></p>
<p>The best deadline to submit your MA application by is <strong>1 July</strong>, however please be reassured that we can take late applications until the start of the course if places are still available.</p>
<ul><li><strong>Email: </strong><a href="mailto:admissions@aup.ac.uk">admissions@aup.ac.uk</a></li><li><strong>Tel:</strong> +44 (0)1752 203434</li></ul>
<p>Click the button below to book an informal online chat with Postgraduate Course Leader, <a href="https://www.aup.ac.uk/people/tom-milnes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Tom Milnes</a>.</p>
