Art and design students hope to sell their wares using their summer shows to boost their career prospects. Andrea Jones reports.

FROM fine art to photography, ceramics to sculpture, fashions to textiles, work by the region’s most dynamic student artists is about to go on show in the North- East – and it’s all for sale.

Visitors will get the chance to buy the collectibles of the future as Cleveland College of Art and Design (CCAD), one of only four specialist art colleges in the country, opens its doors to showcase the best in a new generation of talent.

Degree and national diploma students from CCAD will be exhibiting their final year creations at the college’s Middlesbrough and Hartlepool campus and in the Art Gallery, Church Square, Hartlepool, from June 3 to 9.

“Last year’s shows were a great success, leading to employment for many of our students,” says programme leader for applied arts, Eve Hardwick.

“They have produced items that people really want to buy and it’s a great opportunity for anyone coming to see the shows to get a real steal on new collection items directly from the designers themselves.

“If last year is anything to go by, we will be expecting a vast amount of sales and commissions on bespoke original works of art and accessories such as precious and non-precious jewellery, handbags, vessels, wall art, scarves and fashion items.”

The exhibitions, which are the culmination of years of work by young designers and artists, will display works in ceramics, photography, 3D design, painting, drawing, illustration, fashion, textiles, digital arts, graphics, interactive design, costume design, entertainment arts, moving images and fine art.

Entertainment design craft programme leader Tony Shaw has seen his students go on to work within the industry producing props for the Harry Potter films, Phantom of the Opera and Hollywood blockbusters, such as Batman. “It’s also an ideal stage for industry experts to come up to the region to see what our design graduates in the North-East are producing,”

he says.

TV and film production work will be displayed from June 3 to 9 in screenings at Flix Bar next to the Hartlepool campus.

“The college’s graduate show is a unique opportunity for people to experience some of the very best of emerging contemporary art and design talent in our country at the moment,”

says principal Martin Raby “The show also offers a unique opportunity for the public to view and buy new work, with everything from sculptures to precious jewellery, and a chance to discover the big names of the future.”

■ For details of exhibition times go to ccad.ac.uk. For more details on any of CCAD courses, which are still recruiting for this year, contact 01642-288888.