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Discover Craft at Mount Edgcumbe – an outdoor exhibition by Arts University Plymouth students
Friday, 8 August, 2025 — Discover Craft at Mount Edgcumbe, a student-led outdoor exhibition by Arts University Plymouth BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices students. Explore and apply now through Clearing 2025.
<p dir="ltr">This summer, <strong>Arts University Plymouth’s </strong><a href="https://www.aup.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/ba-hons-craft-material-practices" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices</strong></a><strong> students</strong> have transformed the historic Formal Gardens of Mount Edgcumbe Country Park into an open-air gallery.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/art_at_edgcumbe/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Craft at Mount Edgcumbe</strong></a> is a series of site-specific artworks created by second-year students, installed across the estate like a creative treasure hunt. Each piece draws on the history, legends, landscapes and maritime heritage of this unique location. Some of the students have responded to themes that relate to Plymouth Sound National Marine Park, the UK’s first National Marine Park, which advocates ways that the public can learn to care about the coastal environment in order to protect it.</p>
<p>With a <a href="https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/1/viewer?mid=1-cq7c-Uy5mAKQ9Xpr4DcUyTHrTFs7hA&ll=0%2C0&z=15" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>free digital map</strong></a> available on-site, visitors can follow a trail to discover sculptures and installations in unexpected places – a perfect summer activity just ten minutes across the water from Plymouth on the <strong>Cremyll Ferry</strong>.</p>
'Hard To Swallow 2' – David Beasley (2025)
<p dir="ltr">Highlights of the exhibition include:</p><ul><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Those Ships Have Sailed –<a href="https://www.instagram.com/sj.hooker/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"> SJ Hooker</a></strong><br /> Glass roundels with encased copper ship silhouettes inspired by Plymouth Sound’s centuries of shipping activity.<br /></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Portrait Pots – <a href="https://www.instagram.com/rosiedoesartnstuff/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rosie Eagle</a></strong><br /> Large-scale pots that act as ‘portraits’ of the site itself, featuring textures and motifs from a tour of Mount Edgcumbe.</p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Hard to Swallow – <a href="https://www.instagram.com/davidbeasley68/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">David Beasley<br /></a></strong>A life-size basking shark mouth highlighting plastic pollution, made from reclaimed steel and recycled materials.</p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Passage Through Glass – <a href="https://www.instagram.com/darcy_facer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Darcy Facer</a></strong><br /> Stained glass panels in reclaimed oak, depicting Darwin’s voyage of discovery.<br /></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Trade in Wrecks – <a href="https://www.instagram.com/chalkandginger/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sean Poulton</a></strong><br /> A sculptural map of a shipwreck’s deck set out with 3D markers, inviting visitors to consider vessels lost in Plymouth Sound.<br /></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>All Hands on Deck – <a href="https://www.instagram.com/elizabethalicewilliams/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Elizabeth Williams </a>& visitors</strong><br /> A collaborative clay installation made with Mount Edgcumbe visitors, inspired by community and conservation of the National Marine Park.</p></li></ul>
<p dir="ltr">These works – and many others – reflect the extraordinary imagination of our students and their ability to merge tradition, contemporary issues, and location-specific narratives.</p>
Craft at Mount Edgcumbe
<p dir="ltr">This exhibition demonstrates the distinctive ethos of our <strong>BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices</strong> course at Arts University Plymouth.</p>
<p dir="ltr">With almost <strong>150,000 people working in the UK’s craft industry</strong>, our course is designed to help students develop the skills, insight and professional confidence to succeed as contemporary makers.</p><ul><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Explore materials</strong> – Learn about glass, ceramics, wood, metals, and digital fabrication techniques in specialist facilities.<br /></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Hands-on experience</strong> – Work on live briefs and collaborate with real clients such as:The Tate Exchange, The Box, MAKE Southwest, and Mount Edgcumbe Estate.<br /></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Innovate for the future</strong> – Experiment with new approaches to making that support sustainable and regenerative futures.<br /></p></li></ul>
<p><strong>Join an international maker community</strong> – Take part in events such as our renowned Making Futures conference.<br /></p>
<p>Our <strong>state-of-the-art £8m Craft, Design and Fabrication Workshops</strong> include hot-glass studios, wood and metal workshops, ceramic kilns, and our Fab Lab for laser cutting, 3D printing and CNC processes.</p>
I was unsure which creative route to follow, so I took the opportunities offered to learn as much as possible across a number of disciplines – and I found my specialism.
Caroline Barr, BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices student
<ul><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>Where:</strong><a href="https://www.mountedgcumbe.gov.uk/"> Mount Edgcumbe Country Park, Cornwall<br /></a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>When:</strong> All summer, free entry</p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr"><strong>How:</strong> Catch the <a href="https://www.plymouthboattrips.co.uk/ferries/cremyll-ferry/"><strong>Cremyll Ferry</strong></a> from Plymouth’s Royal William Yard – just a 10-minute crossing into the heart of the estate</p></li></ul>
<p dir="ltr">If you’re inspired by the work of these students, there’s still time to join Arts University Plymouth this September.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Through <a href="https://www.aup.ac.uk/clearing"><strong>Clearing 2025</strong></a>, we’re welcoming applications for BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices and other undergraduate courses.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>Get in touch today:</strong></p><ul><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr">Email: <a href="mailto:admissions@aup.ac.uk"><strong>admissions@aup.ac.uk</strong><br /></a></p></li><li dir="ltr"><p dir="ltr">Phone: <strong>+44 (0)1752 203434</strong><br /></p></li></ul>
<p dir="ltr">Come and explore how we support the next generation of makers, designers, and thinkers to shape a creative future.<br /></p>
<p>Definitely. In Year 1 you rotate through every workshop in our Material Studio and Fab Lab South West—throwing clay, blowing hot glass, casting metal, shaping wood and using digital tools. That broad foundation lets you discover what suits your ideas best; from Year 2 onwards you can dive deep into a single material such as glass or keep working across several, supported by expert technicians and open-access facilities.<br /></p>
<p>All glass processes—hot-glass blowing, kiln-forming, lampworking and cold-working—take place in the purpose-built hot-glass studios inside our £8 million Craft, Design and Fabrication Workshops.</p>
<p>BA (Hons) Craft & Material Practices lets you specialise in glass while also exploring ceramics, wood and metal. The course combines traditional skills with digital prototyping in Fab Lab South West.</p>
<p>Yes. After an introductory material rotation, you can devote projects, research and your final exhibition to glass, supported by specialist technicians and visiting glass artists.</p>
<p>Our studio runs an energy-efficient electric furnace, reducing carbon emissions compared with gas-fired equipment, and sustainability is embedded in all workshop practice.</p>
<p>Students routinely show glass pieces in our on site gallery spaces, at the annual Degree Shows and off-site projects like Mount Edgcumbe. External briefs with partners such as Tate Exchange and MAKE Southwest also create showcase opportunities.</p>
<p>Book an Open Day or campus tour—there’s even a travel bursary of up to £80 for UK visitors—and you might get a chance to watch live glass demonstrations while you’re here.</p>
