Epson supports The Royal Academy Schools' students

The Royal Academy Schools recently held its annual exhibition of final year postgraduate students’ work profiling the work of 17 artists. Housed within the historic studio spaces of the Schools, several of the works on display included those produced using large-format Epson printers and projectors, accessible to the students in the on-site Epson Digital Media Suite. Epson provides the very latest in large-format printers and projectors to the RA Schools so students can experiment with different materials and designs and to produce their final artwork.

The Royal Academy Schools offer the UK’s only three-year, full-time, postgraduate course and is regarded as a Centre of Excellence in the art world. The graduation exhibition provides visitors with a rare opportunity to view the finished artwork across a range of media from painting to photography, sculpture, digital print and film.

The show is firmly established as the most exciting and creative of all the UK graduation shows and was a resounding success. Art Collectors, dealers and museum curators attended and the exhibiting students benefitted tremendously from record-breaking sales of works, gallery deals offering shows and representation, plus additional support through several prestigious prizes and travel awards. It is estimated the shows were viewed by around 10,000 visitors, many of whom are regular supporters of the wider Royal Academy.

All the students showing have worked with Epson’s large-format printers and/or projectors at some time during their course and artworks created through the Epson Digital Media Suite sponsored workshops were in evidence throughout.

In this year’s exhibition:

• Adham Faramawy exhibited works using a variety of media including video installation, digital inkjet print works, pixelated painted constructions inspired by internet imagery and visual bombardment and sound works.
• James Robertson utilised digital media to produce a small army of digitally-produced laser cut-outs printed onto Foamex depicting a young feminist campaigner, alongside appropriated and manipulated digital poster works and printed wet t-shirts that were repeatedly stuck to the gallery walls with water.
• In the works of Brad Grievson the use of printing was just as prevalent but not as instantly recognisable. Often deceptive in their simplicity his works use digital transfer printing, inkjet production and inkjet wrapping techniques on unlikely substrates and materials. His use of digital technologies often works against the intended function of the machines he uses.
• For his multi-media, four-screen video work Tim Pratt used projectors to create high-definition large-format filmed images of forensic close-ups of everyday objects - often unrecognisable at such massive scales - filling a whole gallery space of the RA Schools.
• Marie Von Heyl created an installation which explored new technologies using digital drawings, films, large-format inkjet prints and published texts.
• The digital print installation created by Amy Petra Woodward was made from a similar sense of curiosity regarding technology but with massively different results. Her show consisted of two large tables upon which she placed iridescent Lycra fabric sheets that had collections of digitally produced photographic imagery printed onto them.

Mark Hampson, Head of Material Processes, Royal Academy says, “The RA Schools graduation show demonstrates the wonderful creative outcomes of our collaborative relationship with Epson. All the students have worked in the Epson Digital Media Suite while researching, preparing and producing their artwork and their involvement with Epson technologies has influenced their final show tremendously.”

Nick White, business manager, ProGraphics at Epson UK adds, “As a leading supplier of technology to the fine art market, Epson is very keen to support young artists. Through our partnership with the Royal Academy Schools, we are able to offer the students the opportunity to test Epson’s equipment to its limit and experiment with their creative ideas.”