Sculpture  Sculpture Royal College of Art ../webroot/files/QualificationSubSubjectAreas/cover_photo/1537519425Sculpture.jpg

A generous bursary scheme exists at the RCA for eligible students: this year the Royal College of Art allocated ?2.8 million in fees and maintenance grants. Department Philosophy The department aims to equip students with the essential inner-belief, practical ability and confidence based upon knowledge to continue their career in sculpture. Students selected generally represent the wide range of sculpture activity as it exists in the world outside, coming directly from BA courses as well as at later points in their career. They have normally already formed the beginnings of a work identity and want to pursue it, build on it, evolve it and help it to reach a point of higher achievement. On entry, students are provided with an appropriate workspace and allocated a Personal Tutor who will regularly monitor the student?s progress. There will be an induction tutorial with each student to clarify their individual sculpture aspirations and to define a work programme. Additionally, the student will be allocated an individual Visiting Tutor who will see the student at least twice each term. This person will be chosen after discussion with the student and with their individual work practice in mind. All students can sign up to see any of the visiting artists who come into the department. From the beginning of the first year all the students will be encouraged to use the Drawing Studio and its facilities. Drawing is a fundamental activity in the visual arts and all students are expected to have examined its relevance to their individual work. MA Sculpture Foundry Route Although the majority of the students pursue a twoyear Sculpture MA there is also a discrete MA Foundry route that takes four students a year to work for part of their time on gaining professional knowledge in foundry skills. This route is intended for sculpture students with an interest in and commitment to aspects of the metal-casting process with a view to extending their own sculpture. The route will allow students to continue to develop their work whilst learning all aspects of lost-wax bronze-casting techniques. To this end a portion of the course will be spent working on client sculptures through all stages of the casting process. From the start of the course, students will begin to make and develop their own sculpture practice and will have studio space for this in common with all other MA students. By the end of the third term of the first year students will have gained sufficient knowledge and experience to be able to use the foundry facilities with fluency and confidence. In the second year, students are able to concentrate entirely on their own sculpture whilst still remaining part of the foundry team, contributing to the group effort as required. Otherwise, students? academic programme will follow exactly that of other MA Sculpture students. Resources & Facilities The Sculpture Department is now in newly refurbished studios in Battersea. The buildings are large, lofty and adaptable, serving both as pragmatic workshops studios and as open, airy exhibition spaces. There are large studios, and well-equipped workshops for metal- , stone- and wood-carving. There is equipment for gas, arc and argon welding and a foundry for casting in bronze, aluminium and other metals. There is also machinery for bending, drilling and grinding metals. Certain basic materials are provided, and each student has a budget to purchase their own materials. Facilities in other schools are available to students by arrangement. There is provision for an area where the light input is controlled to enable light and projection installation to be carried out. Part of the Fine Art Computer Cluster is based in the building in Howie Street. The Sculpture Department has its own video cameras and projectors. A digital camera and editing facility is available in the Fine Art School. During the first year, the Sculpture students hold an interim work-in-progress exhibition in the main galleries of the