Art students will be making an exhibition of themselves but not all of them in the way Dundee University might wish.
The launch of the annual Degree Show at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design will see a public protest staged over feared cuts to studio space used by the students when creating their works.
The campaigners have already attracted around 1,000 backers for an online petition and are hoping to gain more support from the families and other invited guests of the 245 final-year students who are exhibiting.
The petition states: “It has recently come to light that Dundee University will be annexing students’ vital studio space for ‘undefined purposes’.
The closure of these large areas will mean that students will be funnelled into other parts of the college where space is already limited.
Among the messages of support on the petition website was one from recent graduate Sylvia Law, from London, who said: “The studio space was vital to my development during my final year as it allowed me to build large sculptural works and also access my studio outwith the opening hours of the college.
“I would urge that the university reconsider this decision as it surely would have a detrimental effect on the student life and quality of work being produced.”
The college’s acting dean Jeanette Paul said: “We have generous studio provision in comparison to many institutions across the UK and we are committed to maintaining good quality space for our students.
“Across the whole university we are currently looking to how we use the space most effectively to facilitate changing working patterns and new methods of teaching. Space is a valuable, and expensive, resource and we have to be sure we are using it in the most efficient ways.”
She said that new formats for studio space would be developed and students would be kept informed.
The Degree Show attracts around 10,000 visitors each year and is seen as a springboard for some of the country’s most exciting emerging artists and designers.
The exhibition will be open to the public from tomorrow until May 25 from 10am to 8pm on weekdays and 10am to 4pm on weekends.
Admission is free.