MA Glass

We encourage diversity in thinking and making, acknowledging the potential in material exploration, collaborative working, cross-fertilisation of ideas, and the exploration of new and vital concepts. Critical enquiry and practice-based exploration are central to the programmes, helping you to make dynamic and challenging work that resonates and reflects your key concerns in light of current national and international dialogues.

The MA Glass programme encourages the development of individual and distinctive glass practice through engagement with contemporary approaches to the material, critical and cultural context and debate.

You will explore a full range of material expressions that will encourage and challenge preconceptions about glass and its status within the world of craft, art and design.

The scope of the material and the range of processes include hot glass, kiln-formed glass, coldworking, and architectural glass – resulting in a wide range of potential outcomes, from product design and sculpture to architectural installations. The programme is uniquely placed to offer a rich cross-disciplinary practice; you will have access to our spacious and well-equipped metal and jewellery studios, as well as ceramics, glass and resistant materials workshops, and our superbly equipped Fab Lab.

You will have the opportunity to critically engage with current debates within the subject area, relevant institutional contexts and partners and be encouraged to consider what it means to be an artist in the 21st century.
We’ll support you in articulating your ideas, developing your working methods and creating independent work, through individual tutorials, lectures, subject-specific seminars, studio and gallery visits and group critiques with access to our rich workshop areas and technical resources across the university.

You will have the opportunity to critically engage with current debates within the subject area, and be encouraged to consider what it means to be a craftsperson in the 21st century. Key issues include sustainability, material life cycles, added value and approaches to the creative industries, museum and gallery interpretation and curation.

The programme addresses histories, technologies, contexts, material qualities, conceptual and narrative developments. Current issues around craft are explored such as the rise of digital tools and technologies, hybrid practices, sustainability and globalisation. You are encouraged to consider these issues through testing, making, re-making, evaluating and positioning your critically engaged practice.

This programme encourages entrepreneurial creativity through self-initiated and independent approaches to making, whilst considering the subject at its extreme edges in relation to process, technique, application, potential customer use and audience.