From application to curation: Jenny Eden talks postgraduate fine art study

Our annual MA Show showcases an exciting variety of work by emerging and established artists and designers, who have undertaken postgraduate study with us.

To celebrate the show, we’ll be focusing on some of our favourite pieces from this year’s exhibition, as well as the opinions and experiences of the students that have created them.

In this latest piece in our series, MFA Fine Art student Jenny Eden discusses her postgraduate journey so far, from considering an application to starting her second year. 

Prior to the MFA I had been working as an Art Tutor teaching A-Level Fine Art

‘This background, along with my developing practice, put me in a good place to start studying again for myself. I’d spent a few years teaching and working since my degree in Fine Art from Birmingham School of Art, so I was certain about beginning postgraduate study and really keen to get everything out of it. In some ways, I knew it was now or never.’

At the beginning of this process, I researched a number of MA/MFA courses and was accepted elsewhere, but chose to come to Manchester School of Art for a few reasons

‘I particularly connected with the ethos of the MFA course here and the focus on making work. At my interview, the conversation with tutors flowed nicely. It felt natural, but challenging and they could see my practice was ready for postgraduate input.

I knew I could do what I needed to do at the School of Art, and that the tutors would help me to get where I wanted to be. It was clear that they knew the right stuff, they worked as artists, understood the art world and I felt a belief in my potential. I also knew the city a little bit and admire its strength over the years, as it has developed into a truly international city with great galleries and lots happening’.

My work has certainly become more robust over the year

‘When I look at the paintings on the wall in the MA Show, I feel the many shifts and turns that my practice has taken during my time so far at the School of Art. And I witness the steady progression that has clearly happened through the structure of the course and the ongoing and developmental dialogue with tutors.

In Fine Art, the year is split into three units: Practice 1 and Practice 2, which last a term each, and Practice 3, which takes you from Easter to the assessment in September.

This configuration makes for a smooth evolution of your practice. Some people might think the Practice 1 assessment is too soon, but looking back, an assessment before Christmas gives you a good indication of how your practice is developing, surviving and withstanding change and critical reflection.’

The Professional Platforms Unit ‘Artworld or Death’ was invaluable

‘Especially when the end of the MA year looms and you are starting to think more seriously about your place in the art world. This unit gave clear guidelines, suggestions and thinking opportunities for us as artists. I am currently pursuing a number of the things we discussed in the sessions.

The tutors have each provided me with valuable thinking material and through our discussions. I have come to understand much more about painting and my work. I owe a great deal to them and certainly could not have taken my work to the place it is now without them. The core MA tutors (and the other tutors from BA Fine Art) are all truly excellent, honest, keen and giving of knowledge. The seminars and lectures have driven us to contemplate and debate Fine Art in its widest context and I have been introduced to new ways of thinking about art.’

It’s certainly important to research the course, tutors, university and city as well as you can before applying to a course, accepting an offer or attending on the first day.

‘People are suited to different things and what works for one person might not work for another. From my experience it is also important to make sure you see tutors and, if you like, structure your own learning.

I also suggest that you take every opportunity to make things happen, respond to tutorial input and take on the journey. For me the journey has produced work that I did not envisage; I started the course as a hard edge and geometric painter who layered and distressed with spatial ideas in mind. Having abandoned the hard edge - for the moment anyway - I am now working with marks and gesture with a much stronger understanding of colour, and the work has more dialogue than it did before.’

To find out more information about this year’s show and to see the work of the students who exhibitied in it visit: www.art.mmu.ac.uk/mashow/

Want to hear from more exhibiting designers and artists? You can find previous pieces from our MA Show featured artists and designers series on our news page.

You can also learn more about Jenny and her work on her website.