These prizes identify upcoming talent within the creative arts at the University, and winners are rewarded with incentives such as cash prizes and creative resources.
The winners were as follows:
- Dennis Holt Travel Scholarship: PhD researcher, Daniel Fountain
- Leicester Printmakers Award: Foundation student, Kirsten Smith
- Printmakers Council Award: Keral Jaintilal
- Potclays Ceramic Prize: Katie Harman
- John Mack Foundation Prize: Olivia Azzopardi (Fine Art), Kathryn Geary (Textiles), Molly Neale (3D), Laura Westfield (Visual Communications)
- Enterprise Prizes: Jessica Benham (Fine Art), Lydia Tagg (Textiles), and Emily Forrester, Charlotte Evelyn and Jessica Grindon (Graphic Communication and Illustration)
- Student Representative Award: Catherine Gollifer (Graphic Communication and Illustration)
- Development Trust Award: Chloe-Ann Baker-Croft, Freya Legon and Jessica Mannings.
The winners of the Edward Sharp Fund were announced as final-year students Da Hyoung Choi (Fine Art) and Kate Dixon (Textiles). This prestigious award is selected by a judging panel including the Dean of the School, the Director of LU Arts and other academics within the School.
Image: Climate change protesters printed on dyed silk satin, by Kate Dixon
The University will purchase the winning students’ work to display on campus.
Talking about the Edward Sharp Fund winners, Director of LU Arts, Nick Slater, commented: “I was keen to select work that was not only of a high quality but also felt original and perhaps something that represented this particular moment in time.
“As such, Kate Dixon’s issue-based work was not only beautifully rendered but also dealt with issues around fracking and climate change. Da Hyoung Choi’s work was selected for its originality and its vibrant, luminous colouring. Both works will make excellent additions to the University art collection and will be enjoyed by staff and students alike.”
Dean of the School, Professor Mike Wilson added: “The panel was keen to reward work that was bold and ambitious in terms of its approach and subject matter.
“Although very different, both pieces, we felt, unflinchingly reflected our uncertain and precarious times in ways that made us think differently about the challenges we currently face and the way we live our lives.”
All of the winners were announced at the Arts Degree Show private viewing, which took place on Friday 7 June.
There’s still time for members of the public to check out the exhibition, which is open every day from 10am-4pm until Sunday 16 June at the Edward Barnsley Building.
For more information and to see a selection of works available, visit the Arts Degree Show website.