Glasgow School of Art showcasing creative graduates

Glasgow Times

02-06-2025

The Glasgow School of Art (GSA) has opened its highly anticipated 2025 Degree Show, running from May 30 to June 8 across its Garnethill campus.
Additionally, the GSA's Master of Fine Art exhibition opened on Wednesday, May 29, and will also run until June 8 at The Glue Factory.
The physical exhibitions are accompanied by an extensive digital showcase, available to view at gsa.ac.uk/degreeshow25.
Read more: Glasgow to host romantic candlelight concert based on hit Netflix show
With more than 840 students presenting work across the Schools of Fine Art, Design, Architecture, and Innovation and Technology, the exhibition is Glasgow's largest public visual arts event.
This year's graduates explore urgent contemporary themes - from climate change and artificial intelligence to cultural identity and gender - through a diverse array of media, including sculpture, textiles, painting, film, and immersive design.
Professor Penny Macbeth, director of the GSA, described the show as a celebration of creative inquiry.
She said: 'Across all disciplines, students are addressing societal issues and actively demonstrating the value of creative education, and the importance of creative people in setting the pace, asking challenging questions, and offering positive solutions.
'This is one of the highlights of the academic year and the city's cultural calendar.'
The show not only celebrates the accomplishments of the graduates but also underscores the significance of creativity and innovation in addressing contemporary societal issues, including artificial intelligence, identity and representation, climate change, and health and well-being.
Standout works include Tarika Kinney's sustainable fashion collection Progeny, honouring matriarchal heritage using deadstock materials; Mary Lydon's Ukrainian-inspired tapestry reflecting on loss and memory; and Product Design student Iestyn Howorth's Flok1, an innovative solution for wool waste.
Themes of identity and inclusion run deep in projects such as Roots of Bias by Communication Design student Maya Chukwuma, which explores Afro hair through pattern and texture; Jessie Orville's Shades, which reimagines the beauty retail experience to celebrate mixed-heritage identities; and Cole Hailstone's A'GENDA video game, exploring gender expression in digital environments.
Read more: Ed Sheeran shares adorable video of late-night call Scottish superstar
Architecture and environmental design also take centre stage, with Hermione Butcher Knubley's redesign of Porto's Trindade Metro Station, and Zhuoer Zhong's floating biomaterials education centre aboard the Renfrew Ferry.
Marking its 60th anniversary, GSA's Caseroom printing facility also contributed to this year's branding, designed by alumnus Emlyn Firth in collaboration with Edwin Pickstone.
The Degree Show highlights GSA's role as a cultural cornerstone in Glasgow and reaffirms the city's reputation as a hub for contemporary creativity and innovation.