THIS IS THE THIRD
This is our third issue. The submissions
have increased with a greater input from
students. Thank you. We always want
to see more stuff from all areas of the
school. Textiles: we would love your
patterns, Architecture: we could use your
plans. If anyone has anything to say about
what’s going on at the school, we want to
hear from you.
This thick issue has taken it’s time to get
printed. There has been debate within the
editorial about how the magazine should
be edited. On this occasion we have
included all of the written submissions,
which has made editing complicated.
That is why this is a particularly large
issue.
The design of the magazine has been
resized to A5 format, which feels nice in
your hands. Mmm.
We are very exited to announce that the
‘Gram’ club nights, organised to fund the
printing of Mammogram, have raised £455
for the printing of this issue. A huge thank
you to Rory and Patrick, our organisers,
and lovely chaps in their own right. The
next ‘Gram’ will be on Saturday 21st March
showcasing 3 GSA student DJs.
Send your submissions and suggestions to
mammogram@gmx.co.uk
NEWS
COMPLAINTS There has always been
argument over the title of the magazine,
which we acknowledge in printing this
well-argued criticism:
“MAMMOGRAM title:
-No relevance to the content of the
magazine.The title should reflect the
magazine’s manifesto.
- Has connotations to completely
separate issue which for many could be
upsetting and offensive.
- The confusion about the title
undermines a potentially amazing
project. Your on the way to making
some great changes and the name
attached to this achievement should
highlight it’s values.
- We want to be a part of this project and
this title prevents us from feeling that
we can commit to it.
- Finally we think that the name
‘Mammogram’ could hinder your
progress when applying for funding . And
if asked why, there is no explanation to
back up such a bold name. In this case
you are in danger of seeming naive.”
As the magazine depends on your
support and feedback, we are happy
to hear about it. Just drop us a line.
GSA SETTING FOR NEW CHANNEL 4 SHOW. ‘Central
Station’ produced by ISO Design, will begin filming in
April, we are told. There are plans for talks with students.
But this will be the first official consultaion with any
students. The Sunday Herald published an article a
few months ago that we don’t think ISO Design wanted
you to see. It’s apparently part of a much bigger web-
based hydra of 4iP and something called 38minutes.com.
Until now all the press statements seem wordy hype.
An interview with GSA alumnus producer Damien Smith
will follow.
CIRCUS OF DESIRE An exhibition of student work,
organised by the indomitable trio of Artur Van Balen,
Matthew Donnelly, and Jakub Simcik will be held on the
27th of March at the Hillhead St. flat gallery space.
hillheadstreet.blogspot.com
CRIT HAPPENS The monthly cross-discipline crit may
become fortnightly, if interest increases. There have been
two so far and they are worth attending, if only to watch.
OLD NEWS 2nd years might have heard a lecturer scold
seemingly culpable art school students for intefering with
the art at Mary Mary. Who knew whether or not to step
on the Karla Black show? Don’t blame the availability
of free booze either. A few weeks later at “About Time”
in 291 Maryhill they were charging a quid for a Stella.
There was a nice piece in the middle that nobody could
avoid stepping on.
MILK TEETH In the East End, on a windy evening, there
was a show of art, by ECA and GSA students, in a little
store front next to the dark abandoned parking lot off
London Road. It was a cheerful affair, full of smiling
student faces, and everyone had brought their own
booze. There was laughter and delight. Everyone had a
lovely evening of their contemporaries’ art. Afterwards,
some of the less sleepy-headed went all the way back to
the 78 and drank, while Laurie Pitt played some tunes.
[ed. that’s enough for now]
SIDESHOW After February’s disco bloodbath at the
Research Club, Gram dude Rory is moving his own night
Sideshow to the Admiral on Waterloo. March 12th’s got
Slabs’ Brian D’Souza, and April’s Sideshow will host
Sunday Circus’ affable Affi Koman.
A NOTE FROM THE SRC
I do not imagine I am alone in thinking that this year
has been a pretty hard one thus far. I have thought
privately that 08/09 has felt like The Empire Strikes Back
in relation to 07/08’s A New Hope. While the previous year
was not without its fair share of trials and tribulations
(especially for the students and staff of Ceramic Design),
my perception is that this year generally has felt tougher,
colder, and more pessimistic in a way that the last
academic session did not.
While this pessimism can in part be attributed to well-
publicised external conditions, I am concerned that
these, combined with a number of internal pressures
and frustrations (which I’m sure will be discussed within
these pages) have led to a feeling of negativity, cynicism,
even despair at times within The Art School, and I’m
determined that these are not qualities that should ever
be allowed to prevail in an institution such as this.
Without the great depression of 1929 there would have
been no Empire State Building, Chrysler Building or
Rockefeller Center1 and John Steinbeck would not have
written The Grapes of Wrath. When the Second World War
had made many resources expensive or scarce, Charles and
Ray Eames designed some of their most iconic furniture
from cheap, readily available materials like plastic, resin
and plywood. The war in Vietnam galvanised socially and
politically conscious art and counter-culture activity on
an unprecedented scale, and the recession of 1979-82
was the context in which punk, then post-punk and new
wave thrived. While I am not in any way suggesting that
artistic production necessarily benefits from hardship,
creative production can clearly be stimulated by hard
times, existing in spite of, and sometimes directly because
of such times.
COLIN MCKEAN
I am not saying that the problems faced by The Art School
this year are in any way comparable to the great disasters
of the 20th Century, nor am I saying that it is acceptable
for studios to be cold and damp or for courses to be
understaffed, just because we know that art can and will
be made there despite of these hardships. What I am
saying is that bad things happen, and when they do we
must, as creative people, acknowledge them, respond to
them, learn from them and move on. Above all we must
not let any adversity prevent us from doing what we do.
While workshop closures, reductions in staffing numbers,
cessations of recruitment, lack of communication and
distrust of management are all disappointing, undesirable
circumstances that we have been required to endure. They
are, in the grand scheme of things, minor obstacles to
be negotiated, frustrations to be voiced. Such things are
not disasters; they are inconveniences that will eventually
be forgotten. The tragedy will be if we let these things
preoccupy us, dominate our thinking, propagate negativity
and distract us from the work that we are here to do.
1. Each was the result of U.S. Government investment in architecture to
create jobs and stimulate the economy.
THE BRAVE NEW WORLD OF
ART FUNDING
A SYNOPSIS OF CREATIVE SCOTLAND
Creative Scotland is a proposal to merge the Scottish
Arts Council and Scottish Screen into a single company.
It was first proposed in 2000 based on a cultural policy
titled, “How to use public spend to lever growth in cultural
and creative industries”, proposing to use public funds
to improve industry. From this policy Creative Scotland
emerged. It was registered as a company in June 2006;
in December 2006 the Scottish Government published
a draft bill with the framework and priorities of Creative
Scotland. Last year the bill was put forward in parliament,
but to the relief of many it failed.
The proposal has been widely criticized by the arts
community. In a meeting hosted by the magazine Variant
in December, artists expressed a number of concerns: that
the development of Creative Scotland lacked transparency,
treated artists with disregard, and was characterised by
a complete lack of consultation. The merger will increase
administrative costs, diverting funding away from artists.
Furthermore, it is suspected that artists grants are to
be replaced by loans in an attempt to encourage artists
to become more entrepreneurial. One speaker, an artist
from Catalonia, where a similar scheme has already been
introduced, told us that it had been a complete disaster
and had left artists in serious debt.
Following the meeting, a letter was put together expressing
artists’ concerns. More than 440 people signed this letter,
which was then sent to MSPs. Since then, the Culture
Minister Linda Fabiani– who has been pushing forward the
Creative Scotland bill– after having repeatedly declined
for 18 months, finally agreed to meet members of the
Scottish Artist Union and other representatives. However
a few days after Fabiani met with representatives she was
replaced by Mike Russell. Russell is felt to be pushing
Creative Scotland in much the same direction.
The Creative Scotland bill will now be presented to
parliament in March. It is possible that the bill could be
voted out, although other bills under scrutiny at this time
will concern Mental Health Care and Prison facilities,
so arts funding may be overlooked. In a meeting on the
25th February at GSA, artists discussed the importance
of protecting culture from commerce. Much concern was
expressed that the merge might lead to a lack of cultural
and creative diversity and the long-held “arms-length”
policy, after Creative Scotland’s suggestion of a focus on
national promotion.
The proposed creation of Creative Scotland shows clear
parallels with wider political changes. The challenges we
face as students confronted with a constant push towards
a more economically viable model of education, are similar
to the problems encountered by artists. How will this affect
us when we leave GSA? The neo-liberal ideology behind
these changes masks itself as the only possible method
of organisation. Resistance to such changes for the worse
can only come from the large community of artists and
aspiring artists in Scotland that are working for a fairer
and more democratic solution.
To keep up to date go to: creativescotland.blogspot.com

S AT RISK”
ION I
AT
C
?
ART ED U
C AT I O N
“ F I N E
E A RT E DU
ON IN FIN
N G
’ S G O I
WHAT
This morning I woke up to the news that the government
are talking to businesses about establishing internships
in an attempt to soak up some of the forecasted 400,000
graduating students who, after the summer, will be
looking for employment.
Most graduating students will have taken out a student loan
– a policy introduced under Tony Blair’s government, when
the old grant system was abandoned. Their justification for
such a policy, which leaves students with an average of
£15,000 debt (and rising), has not merely been the promise
of employment but of the higher earning capacity of the
graduate student– presumably a high enough wage by which
to start paying off our loans. It is a policy that has had a
pernicious effect upon higher education– it is easy to see
how a state system which judges a university’s success
by such criteria, will place pressure upon universities to
get their graduates into employment. This has in turn seen
an emergence of courses designed with strong vocational
strands. Many students will have felt the need to find
employment to minimise their debts, and are consequently
sometimes accused of being part-time and strategic in their
approach to learning, diminishing their potential experience
of higher education.
If you are leaving art school with substantial debt, then
you can indeed argue that it is the prospect of employment
with which you are most concerned– but if we are talking
about a fine art degree, and we are honest with ourselves,
it is not a choice you will have made primarily for its
employment prospects.
From my experience of being at GSA, the question of what a
fine art degree will do for us once we leave is never discussed,
it remains as ‘the elephant in the room’. We are made
aware of ‘professional practice’, and there is talk of C.V.’s,
residencies and grant applications – but the truth is that
the majority of fine art graduates will not be supporting
themselves as artists when they leave university. But
should this fact merely represent failure? I personally
think not, and more importantly in the present climate of
increased accountability of higher education, I believe it is
crucial for fine art education to defend its unique character,
ensuring that it is not compromised. I know that I find myself
justifying to others what is commonly perceived to be the
‘soft option’ of a fine art degree– and I do so vehemently.
Most undergraduates come to university having previously
experienced a structured education with a defined curriculum
and the discipline of the classroom. For those who pursue
a purely vocational university degree such as medicine,
their time at university, though obviously more academically
challenging, may in many respects be similar. Such a degree
educates for a specific career, but if you are unable to find
the employment for which you have been trained, then
it does little to prepare you for other options. In contrast,
within the four years we spend at art school, we are
expected on top of learning any necessary technical skills,
to be self-motivated and disciplined enough to be able to
account for ourselves and finally to deal with the pressure
of working towards a degree show. Personally, I think that
is a huge task, but it also presents an opportunity to really
develop as an individual. If we conclude that we are not
going to pursue life as an artist, we have indeed discovered
something about ourselves – and most of us are fully
prepared to consider alternatives.
So how acute is the need to defend higher Fine Art education?
I have already suggested that it may be in a vulnerable
position – it will need to justify itself in the present climate
for vocational education, to resist being redesigned into
educating ‘creative entrepreneurs’ instead of artists, and
continue to support the studio system, which obviously does
not conform to the economics of space.
These issues are not only being felt within GSA but within
art schools throughout the country. In April last year,
Art Monthly published a letter– ‘Can’t get no satisfaction’–
and from that one letter received a wave of correspondence,
spawning editorials and articles which culminated in a
special October issue ‘The Future of Art Education’ (all
available in the GSA library and on-line). The on-line ‘Manifesto
Club’ has posted statements calling for people to get involved
with the debate. Articles from the press have stated that,
“The teaching of art and design in UK universities is not fit
for purpose, according to a major review of the discipline”,
along with statements such as, “Art and design degrees ‘need
overhaul’,” and how “Low morale devastates art colleges.”

From all the coverage, one can only conclude that the
situation is at crisis point. Clearly within many art schools
there has developed an atmosphere of discontent, which
appears to be fuelled at one level by internal friction between
the teaching staff, their managers and the administration–
and at another, by the implementation of growing govern-
ment regulation and demands for accountability, not to
mention increasing financial constraints (even prior to talk
of ‘credit crunch’). And there have been the stirrings of
student action too– a Chelsea College Art and Design MA
student in 2005, made an out of court settlement (terms
undisclosed), and at the London College of Communication
(University of the Arts London) students on the BA Film
and Video course were demanding their fees be refunded,
‘due to staff shortages and lack of organisation’ (LCC News
September 20th 2007).

It made depressing reading, but at the time also seemed

somewhat academic. Then returning to GSA in September,
it suddenly felt as though we were all in the thick of it–
members of staff had been made redundant and there
were rumours of financial problems. So how might this
affect the future of fine art education within the art school?
It has indeed been the Fine Art departments, which have born
the brunt of the staff cuts, losing both tutors and technicians.
It now appears likely that more savings will be demanded,
which will further detrimentally affect our experience at
the school. However as long as our requests, to be kept
informed about what is happening within the school,
continues to fall on deaf ears, and in the absence of any
assurances, my hunch that fine art education is at risk will
increasingly turn to conviction and an urgency to act.

www.artmonthly.co.uk/arteducation.htm
www.manifestoclub.com/for-a-free-art-school-statement
www.manifestoclub.com/node/407

No matter where you look in the news at the moment
you’re greeted with gigantic red arrows pointing
downwards. Unemployment numbers continue to escalate
to levels only previously reached before jobs were invented
and Europe’s gas supplies look set to be turned off at any
A P O C A LY P S E N O !
moment. If we are to believe everything that the media
tells us, it looks like sooner or later we are bound to be
traipsing red-eyed and starving through a featureless grey
landscape with only a charred teddy bear for company.
What happened to Happy New Year? Argh, it’s not that
bad is it? Well, let’s remember that the media have a
habit of feeding on the fear of the populace. It seems
that human beings love to be scared; especially in this
country. For a couple of years after 9/11, you couldn’t
go for a week without some lunatic doom-monger coming
up to you and earnestly whispering a warning that
you shouldn’t get on the underground, or some kindly
but mentally-delicate relative imploring you to quickly
go out and buy a clockwork radio and 26 tins of tomato
soup. Fast-forward a few years and nothing much has
changed. Simply replace the devastation in Manhattan
with that of Gaza, and the impending terrorist attacks
or bird-flu outbreak with the impending collapse of the
entire financial system.
This kind of bad news taps directly into the kind of fear
that is prevalent in (previously) affluent Western cultures
such as our own– the fear of losing what we have.
Apologies for the rather ham-fisted link (this is meant
to be an article about film after all) but perhaps this
goes some way to explaining the enduring popularity of
post-apocalyptic, end-of-the-world movies. These kinds
of movies present to us the answers to the ultimate,
terrifying “what-if?” questions. Films like The Day After
Tomorrow, Armageddon, Twelve Monkeys etc. present
answers to the most terrifying “what-if?” questions (okay,
in 99% of the cases completely implausible). After 9/11
the news rolled 24 hour footage of the towers tumbling
down, over and over in a nightmarish loop, and it didn’t
diminish the horror. With this kind of film you sometimes
get to see whole cities tumble under a tidal wave and you
get the thrill associated with the aesthetics of disaster
without the sickening feeling inside.
I read Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road” last year, and its
simple premise of a man and his son walking along a
road in post-apocalypse USA was the basis for a fable
both incredibly moving and utterly terrifying. It is soon
to be released as a film directed by John Hillcoat (The
Proposition) and starring ‘the rugged handsome one’ from
Lord of the Rings, and whilst it may not capture the stark
majesty of the book, I’m sure it will be well worth looking
out for. Up until Sunday night most of the post-apocalyptic
movies I had watched had not come near the experience of
reading “The Road.” Twelve Monkeys and indeed La Jetee
(the French film on which it is based), are both great films
but what makes them great is not the depiction of the
post-apocalyptic world as such, but rather the exceptional
narrative and story structure, and in the case of La Jetee
its unique filmmaking style. Mad Max (often cited as a
classic of the genre) could just as easily have been set
in some backwards part of pre-apocalypse Australia and
it wouldn’t have made a huge difference to the power
of the film. The Day After Tomorrow, unlike the other films,
relies solely on an apocalypse scenario (in this case global
warming) as its main story arc. Unfortunately, unlike
the other films, it is also absolute pap. Due to the need
to condense the concept and various problems associated
with global warming into a manageable timeline, events
occur at such a completely preposterous rate that at
one point people are actually being chased by freezing
ice. The film is drenched in more bad science than your
average shampoo advert, and ends up being the global
warming equivalent of Armageddon or Deep Impact.
They’re both rubbish too.
On Sunday night I watched Threads written by Barry
Hines (Kes), produced by the BBC in 1984 at the height
of Cold War tensions. Threads tells the story of a nuclear
war through the perspective of the people of Sheffield.
Given the fact that it was a TV movie made in the 1980’s
by Aunty Beeb, I approached Threads with the same kind
of trepidation as I would an episode of Bagpuss. True
to form the opening few minutes play like an extended
Hovis advert but soon enough the tension starts to ramp
up. Everyday conversations occur over the backdrop of
radio and TV news reports, detailing the growing tensions
between East and West, and you frequently glimpse
newspapers with headlines of the latest portentous
developments. All the while, the script (full of incidental
dialogue), TV camerawork and acting combine to give the
film an impeccably realistic feel. It also has a narrator,
who helpfully chimes in now and then, explaining things
like why Sheffield is a target, why certain times are better
for a nuclear strike than others and what living through a
nuclear winter is like. All this comes together to create the
strange feeling that you are actually watching a completely
real documentary of life in 1980s Sheffield which is what
makes the horror that follows all the more devastating.

The portrayal of the strike itself is shockingly realistic

but it is the depiction of the devastated, broken society
in the aftermath that really brings the nightmares.
The country’s entire infrastructure is destroyed and
whatever ramshackle systems those in charge have
implemented, manage to be both ruthlessly draconian
and ridiculously ineffectual. The survivors end up roaming
about the countryside scavenging on animal carcasses
and desperately scraping the barren fields for roots and
twigs. After a few years, speech has all but disappeared into
a lunatic language of grunts and semi-words; deformities
and cataracts abound and the population has dwindled to
medieval levels around the 10 million mark. My girlfriend
fell asleep at the very start and only woke up to watch the
last 5 minutes and that was still troubling enough to keep
her awake for most of the night.
Approach with caution.
 WHY IS THE
SCHOOL IN
DEFICIT ?
In the last issue of this magazine, Tanya Eccleston
described how higher education in the UK has become
more dependent on the fees of overseas students, and
how during a time of global economic instability it
becomes difficult for HE institutions in the UK to meet their
overseas recruitment targets. In this situation, it becomes
impossible for institutions to operate to the annual
budgets they have set, which presupposes certain levels
of recruitment. This is the situation The School of Fine
Art at GSA has found itself this year, and in circumstances
where a deficit looked probable, savings had to be made.
So far this year, the School of Fine Art has achieved
most of the necessary cutbacks through (amongst
other things) a reduction in consumables budgets, and
budgets for extra curricular activities. It has also avoided
a significant restructuring of staff, which would almost
certainly have resulted in redundancies, by choosing not
to replace members of staff who have recently left the
school, reassigning their duties to remaining SoFA staff
instead. The result is a situation in which the department
is still functioning much as it has done previously, but with
considerably fewer resources than in previous years, and
with staff who have become overburdened.
“Financially, the UK’s higher education
system is dependent on overseas students
coming here to study because overseas
students bring in a lot more money than
home or EU students. The global economic
downturn is having a huge impact on students
coming to study here from overseas.”
Tanya Eccleston
In an email sent to all staff during the first term, GSA’s
Director described a number of central savings measures
that were designed to “protect GSA’s academic front line.”
These included a temporary freeze on filling vacancies not
deemed “mission critical,” maximising savings on utility bills,
postage and telephone costs, cutting external consultancy
budgets and looking to get better value for money from
existing procurement systems. Whilst these measures are
clearly a sensible start, I wonder whether it feels like the
academic front line really has been sufficiently protected?
What this year has revealed is that GSA is vulnerable to the
negative effects of a failure to meet overseas recruitment
targets, and that the school has no real contingency plan
to cope in a situation in which these targets have not
been met. Despite the directorate’s assertion that the
academic front line would be protected above all else, the
example we have seen within the SoFA this year suggests
that this is sadly not the case. Any future failure to meet
financial targets will result in further erosions into the
education delivered by the school long before a more
radical centralised savings plan is proposed.
On a dubiously positive note, the weakening pound will
make the UK a more affordable destination for many
overseas students over the coming years, which may help
to raise recruitment levels. Whether they will choose to
study at an institution that so clearly prioritises long-term
strategic objectives over its existing staff and student
body is another matter entirely.

PARTICIPATION
Built on an article by Sherry R. Arnstein, “A Ladder of Citizen
Participation,” 1969. In her article, Arnstein describes eight
levels of participation.
Non-participation: Manipulation › Therapy
Tokenism: Informing › Consultation › Placation
Citizen Power: Partnership › Delegated Power › Citizen Control
“Participation in social science is a term, which includes different
means for the public to directly participate in political, economic,
management or other social decisions. Ideally, each actor would
have a say in decisions directly proportional to the degree that
particular decision affects him or her.”
Sherry Arnstein
One of the reasons why the network around Mammogram
is being built up so quickly, is because of the shared frustration
amongst the student body towards members of staff being
made redundant, and the lack of communication between the
executives and the students. If communication was better and
the student organisations were more effective, this ‘alternative’
network might have never begun because the motivation for
doing anything might not have existed.
When students directly seek information there is a limit to how
readily it is given– for example, accessing budget reports. The
school would be best served with as much knowledge as possible
being available to students about the situation facing the school.
Student participation in decision making could only ensure
that the decisions reached were better, not only for us, but for
the school as a whole. Participation can also help to legitimise
the decisions that are made within the student body.Through
surveys and regular meetings with student representatives, the
school proposes to be taking its students seriously, striving to
ensure student participation. However, as Arnstein describes,
in a situation where there have been meetings, surveys and
questionnaires; has apparently everyone had a say. But in the
end only a few people actually participate in the decisions being
made. The decision makers are still upholding the status quo,
being able to defend their decision(s) in saying that they have
considered all views, despite there being no real participation.
When participation is measured by how many people turn up at
meetings, how many responses there are on questionnaires etc.
we are not talking about participation in its real sense, it is a
masquerade, an easily manipulated way to legitimize decisions.
Feedback, presented through articles, debates and emails,
for example, as well as that contributed by tutors, heads of
departments etc., should also be taken seriously. Communication
cannot only be sustained through channels controlled by
executives within the institution’s structures, but also needs to
be appreciated when coming through sources controlled and
generated by students.
The people in power continue to hold the right to decide, without
students having the same power – students are given tokens and
the ability to be heard, but so far have had no muscle in their
meetings with the executives with regard to how the school is run.
There is no negotiation and no real partnership in the meeting
between students and management at the school, as the power
is distributed so unequally.
Those who hold power seldom give it away willingly. To become
full participants at the Glasgow School of Art, the students have
to organise themselves, get hold of information, give their views
freely and strive to become more influential in the running of
the school. To ensure partnership and delegation of power there
is still a lot of work ahead. The current student representatives,
need to be critical and alert as to what they are being led into and
more particularly, become better at disseminating information
to the rest of the student body. In making their voices heard,
by speaking, writing etc., there is a need to build a culture for
debate and participation within the school.
A social network, like the one that is forming around Mammogram
might make real change. It’s about communication, sharing
information, contacts and growing, at the same time as continuing
to form and shape what it is working towards. As it grows, it
will affect more and more people, both around itself and in its
peripheral networks around the school. Slowly one can begin to
see how a change in reality is perceived by the different structures
within the school, eventually reaching a point where the decision
makers are able to see, and share, a particular network’s point
of view. To reach this level, it’s important not only to build the
network itself, but also to obtain an increased understanding
of what goes on at the GSA in the different networks and the
different groups the school consists of.
The only way to be able to sway people and make powerful
arguments is to understand your own position and role in
respect to the role and position of those people you wish to
influence. You can never know too much! Knowledge is the key
to understanding opposing views and possibly changing views
as well.
A more transparent system could make participation easier, and
also legitimize the system itself as it becomes more available.
Direct communication should be strived for, both to ensure
that there are as few misunderstandings as possible, but also
to make the school itself more transparent, making the decision
process that goes on within it more available to all parties
at the school.
TO T H E E D GE
AU S E I ’M K LAUS
C
T PUSH ME ‘
DON’
At a meeting with the Student Representatives Committee
(SRC) on January 12, 2009, Klaus Jung, Head of Fine Art,
presented the budget for the School of Fine Art (SoFA) and
discussed the ‘savings’ taking place.
At the time of the meeting, the SoFA alone had a deficit of
around £35,000. This means that in addition to the redundancies
of tutors and technicians already in place, it is possible that
further academic redundancies are to come and changes
that have already been implemented will not be rectified this
academic year. This leaves Sculpture and Environmental Art with
no metal workshop and will mean that Fine Art Photography
will lose two tutors in addition to the one technician already
made redundant.
Although Klaus assured us that he was doing all in his power
to ensure a ‘minimum’ of changes, he didn’t seem to understand
that changes, which on paper may just be slight shifts in numbers
and percentages, are real changes for the students that have a
detrimental impact on our education and the future of education
at the Glasgow School of Art (GSA).
Members of the SRC expressed their concerns about the
lack of communication between the senior management and
the student body and emphasized the need for information and
the opportunity to contribute ideas, opinions and solutions
regarding changes happening within the school. Klaus rejected
the suggestion that students be updated via email and would not
comment as to whether or not the same level of ‘savings’ had
been made within senior management as have been implemented
within departments. He also declined to comment on the 2007-
2008 14% pay rise for director Seona Reid. A pay rise that is not
only disproportionate when compared to the less than 5% pay rise
given to academic staff, but also when compared to the prevailing
rate of inflation at the time (±4%), which is not to mention the
fact that it was implemented at a time when cuts to academic
staff were already being made.
Since the meeting, Klaus has announced that there have been
further savings made within the SoFA which have eliminated the
deficit. However these savings have not come free or easy. To achieve
the savings, Fine Art tutors are having to share responsibilities.
Vacancies within departments have not been filled, bringing more
work and stress to all staff, that not only affects morale, but also
has an impact on students and their education. Although the
issues discussed here are within Fine Art specifically, the problem
is one that extends throughout the school and indeed throughout
other higher education institutions.
How many detrimental changes will happen before the education
system at GSA truly collapses? At this point it is clear there are
problems with how money is managed in our school. What can
we do about it? We cannot let the senior management forget that
as an educational institution, their priorities lie with the students
who ensure the future of the school. A large proportion of the
reputation of the school is based upon the achievements of former
students. ortion of the reputation of the school is based upon
the achievements of former students. We are a creative body of
students and it is time we demanded and are given an opportunity
to contribute creative and functional ideas, opinions and solutions.
To have our voices heard.

Daedelus and A La Fu @ Captains Rest
The Captains Rest on a Sunday seemed a somewhat odd
venue for an evening of breakbeat, but the crowd were
eager for some cerebral, genre splicing dance music.
A La Fu has appeared on Ninja Tune’s Solid Steel and
performed with Scratch Perverts, so ornate turntablism
was the least that was expected. He scratched and beat
juggled his way through a variety of ragga, breakbeat
and Coldcut samples, reeking of his apparent erratic
attitude. His left field set was totally danceable, making
it a shame that it was only a gig and not a club night.
Shortly to follow was Daedelus (misspelling intended).
Daedelus‘ heavily sampled approach to breaks is
influenced by anything from Flying Lotus to De La Soul.
He too has released on both Ninja Tune and Warp.
Despite the tranquil production on some of his more
conceptual albums, his set was full of techno tempos and
syncopation. Daedelus uses a piece of hardware called
a Monome 40h for the entirety. Consisting of an 8x8 grid
of backlit buttons, this open ended interface allowed for
his set of ornate sequencing, somewhat contradictory
to his dapper, tailored finery. Just as I was struggling
to understand how an apparent Victorian dandy could
produce music from a machine that looks like Lights Out,
Daedelus grabbed my attention away from aesthetics
by throwing in some Spiral Tribe circa ‘93, followed
by mixing some UK hardcore with Roots Manuva. To end
the set he claims its time for a love song and drops the
tempo for some avant-electronics with a honeyed melody.
If this is love then its Valentine’s gift is a Meat Katie
Fabric mix shaped like an ekkie.
2009 is for Bristol Dubstep : Jakes, Pinch, Appleblim and
Komonazmuk. Mary Ann Hobbs says so.
Monotonix and Desalvo @ Captains Rest
The first band to grace the stage are an unsigned band called
United Fruit. It seemed promising when the guitarist walked
out wearing a Daughters t-shirt, but no, they were a bunch
able to create some mathcore that sounded repetitive. Later I
discovered the words ‘United Fruit rule’ scrawled on the toilet
walls of the Arc practise rooms. This is simply bollocks.
Next were Desalvo, representing the more brutal side of the
Glasgow noise scene. Their gut wrenching, abrasive hardcore
would appeal immensely to Converge and Fantomas fans alike.
The lead singer is a heavy set bloke, often seen sporting a
butchers apron and a pigs nose. He oozes a strange, aggressive
sexuality and deviance, turning round to reveal a tattoo on his
back sloganeering ‘philthy.’ He spends the entire set screaming
and dancing provocatively, leaving a sweating path behind him.
During their song ‘Brown Flag’ he shrieks with hysterical
laughing in oddly timed intervals while throwing himself
into the rows of spectators, creating subsequent mess and
chaos in the ram packed venue. Just as I had started to assume
it was all downhill for hardcore after Dillinger Escape Plan
released “Ire Works,” Desalvo growl and spew onto the scene.
To end the evening are Israel’s Monotonix with their
riff-heavy noisy garage rock. They immediately move
the equipment into the middle of the floor and
belt out fuzz wrenching heavy 70’s riffs. The main appeal
to Monotonix is their chaotic live performances. The
singer runs riot through the crowds, seemingly wanting
everyone to be going as mental as he is. Cymbals and drum
sticks are handed out, snare drums are held high above
the crowd abling him to climb on top of one to batter the
hell out of a crowd surfing tom. Another quick equipment
rearrangement and to the upstairs bar he goes, taking
the drummer, guitarist and half the crowd with him as
he slides across the bar and tables, then back down again
for another rearrangement. This time he appears to be
forming a narrative as he ritualistically wraps the drummer
and his kit in a red carpet encouraging the crowd to spit
at him. I think fuck it, a bit of expectoration to end a suitably
messy evening.
2009 is for Scottish Mentalist : Tayside Mental Health, Take A
worm for a Walk Week, Kylie Minoise, Burnt Altar
‘Residence’ is an experiment in how space changes or stays
STUDENT RESIDENCE, BELFAST
the same through its use by different people and activities. With
each new project the boundaries between living, working, private
and public change.
A group from the Glasgow School of Art took part in a residency
in November. A ten bed-roomed house on the Shore Road in
Belfast became the home and workspace for the group of four;
Ane Ostrem, Jen Sykes, George Thompson and Thomas Wells, all
4th year Sculpture and Environmental Art Students. Also involved
in the project was Marcel Sparmann (currently on exchange at
the Glasgow school of Art SEA department) and a group from
the University of Hildeshiem, Germany, as well as artists living
and working in Northern Ireland.
What follows are different accounts from four of the artists
involved in the Shore Road Project.
The Towers
You are on one tower, I am on the other. The distance between us
is just so long that we cannot hear each other, even if we shout.
But I want you to hear me. And I want to know what you have to
say. We make paper aeroplanes and throw them as far as we can,
but it isn’t even close to reach you. From two tin cans and a string
we make phones. I can hear you sing but I cannot make out the
words. The wind is so strong, the string wont stay straight. I try
Morse code with a torch, but it’s not dark yet, and neither of us
really knows the alphabet. We ask passer-bys to pass messages
between us, but how do we know if they actually tell me what
you said? We make megaphones from cardboard, and when we
shout through them, our voices get stronger than the sound of
the sea throwing itself against the shore below us. I can hear
you. You can hear me. But some words get lost on the way. Eaten
by the wind and the distance. Drowned in the waves. I look at you
through binoculars, but I cannot really see you. I cannot read your
facial expression. I don’t know what you are thinking over there. I
don’t know what you are feeling. I cannot read your signals. The
distance between us makes communication different.
HOUSE/HOME
An Invisible Health And Safety Room
I was incredibly surprised by the level of impact that health
and safety has in Britain. So much so, that a performance that
I planned to do in The Art School of Belfast could not be done.
An alternative location had to be found. The new starting came
from Sighle B’s work, in which she worked in a completely black
room. Her room was directly above mine in the housing project,
so I decided to paint mine completely white. The space spoke
with the language of the “white cube”. Next, I added several
typical objects associated with health and safety, such as; a
fire extinguisher, emergency lights and a ladder. Then I painted
these objects white and arranged so that they seemed invisible
within the white space. Thus these objects became useless as
their colour and any written instructions were no longer visible. I
also covered the floor with white balloons, completing the set-up.
Now I could finally do my performance, which I could not do in
the art school. I covered my complete body in white with a white
safety mask and white glasses, which rendered me blind. I chose
“The Bolero” as a backing track and positioned myself on a chair
facing another chair. I then began to cut my forehead extremely
slowly with a scalpel, following the lines on my forehead. The
completely white space was now broken by redness of my own
blood, reflecting ideas of danger.

House/Home
I wanted to fill the house and space with a sound that people
could not relate to. The residence was focused around the
theme “House/Home” and this immediately made me try and
think of all my memories of home as a child. The one that kept
appearing was that of practicing the piano. When I was younger
and we all sat down to have a meal together as a family I would
be constantly restless. Yet the rules of our family (or shall I say
my mum) were that no one could leave the table until everyone
was finished. However, requesting to leave to practice the piano
dodged this as it was deemed educational and therefore equal
to learning good manners. Therefore, every mealtime consisted
of the rest of my family finishing their food to the sound of me
playing the piano - not that well either. This image of people
having to endure creativity amused me and I wanted to bring
it in to the Shore Road house. After lots of people calling in
lots of favours, and meeting friends of friends, a piano was
acquired and then through meeting these friends and talking
about the idea with them a table with a piano sized hole in it was
constructed. When the two came together in Shore Road, “Piano
Table” was made. Though the next week of residence meals were
had around the table whilst the piano was played. One meal in
particular was one for the people who helped in the construction
of the table for which I accompanied on piano. The closing event
saw a slight change in “Piano Table”’s function as it was now
“PianoTableTennis” and it was open to anyone to play table tennis
and/or the piano. The rules of table tennis were slightly altered
to incorporate shots, which deflected off the piano, which were
of course allowed and led to a unique style of play.
A Short Story
“On top of a very steep hill surrounded by sea lies a small stone
house. The house looked very sad, alone on that very steep hill
with only the tree and the cruel wind to talk to. The house saw a
small boy climbing the hill. The boy had always noticed the sad
house at the top of the steep hill and wondered why it looked so
sad. As the winter blew over the steep hill an old lady cared all
alone for the little stone house and as winter melted into spring,
all was quiet in the little stone house.”
The boy cried after his Uncle had finished the story. He would
climb up the very steep hill to the little stone house to see what
had happened to the little old lady.
The house watched as the little boy bobbed in and out of the
hedges, closer and closer to the little stone house, stopping only
a minute to catch his breath and to say hello to the great white
cows that were dotted all over the very steep hill. Through a maze
of nettles he found a small broken window and climbed inside.
He felt the floors creak below him. The house moaned as if it
were in pain. In the very corner of the small room the boy saw a
beautifully gilded piano eerily silent. Gently the boy crept over to it.
BANG! The boy turned quick on his heels for the window he had
crawled through, startled by the loud noise. Then all was still. The
boy turned around once more to nothing there. From nowhere
a tiny bird flew down from the exposed roof and perched on
the very beautiful piano. The boy laughed to himself. He wanted
to explore more of the little stone house. He gently turned the
doorknob to another room. The boy stopped. What he saw was
of such a surprise he could hardly help himself. All over the walls
of this tiny room were names. Names of people that the boy
knew; aunts, uncles, brothers. They were all there. The boy was
happy, he realised that the little stone house had not been alone.
Instead it had been watching over the family at the bottom of
the hill for a long time. The boy picked up a small white stone
from the floor and wrote his name proudly upon the wall. The
little stone house at the top of the very steep hill sighed as if it
was happy. It was dark now and the boy decided that he had best
return to his Uncle to tell him what he had discovered.
When the boy returned to the house of his Uncle at the bottom
of the very steep hill he asked him, “But what had happened to
the old lady that used to live in the little stone house?” His Uncle
replied, “That old lady that lived in the little stone house on top
of the very steep hill was my mother, and she is at peace.”
 Personal websites will always have a stigma as products of
What do you think about it? vanity made purely for the self-satisfaction of their creator,
or solely for business purposes. But more and more artists
I don’t know
and designers maintain blogs alongside their websites to
Well think about it! document thoughts, feelings and generally anything that
comes to mind. The great thing about blogs is that it allows
I don’t know what to think. art and design information to be featured online, before it is
printed in the press.

BLOG ROLL
You never do, I have to do all the thinking.
Quite often the most successful blogs are ones that talk about
subjects that could be considered taboo or controversial.
But you’re asking me too soon, I don’t think this far The blogger Muzi Mei chronicled her sex life and caused
ahead. a lot of controversy in her home country of China. At one
Well you should. point she was banned from posting. It became extremely
popular, challenging the perceptions of what is considered
But I don’t want to. It’s upsetting, I don’t want to think to be ‘acceptable behaviour’ for women in Chinese culture.
Although the blog has since been censored she has been
about it until the last minute.
contacted by publicists who are interested in publishing
some of her writings in a book. This example shows the
That’s so typical of you. great potential for broadcasting your views and the positive
outcomes that may come from it.
Out of mind out of sight.
The GSA itself has some subject specific sites that tutors
and students update with information related to the subject.
It’s actually ‘out of sight, out of mind’
They also contain links to a collection of student blogs,
which make for an interesting read.
That’s not important.
Visual Communication
No. www.gsavis.com/blog
Sculpture and Environmental Art
sea-studio-blog.blogspot.com
But it’s true, if I don’t think about it, it’s not happening,
Masters of Fine Art
I’m happy. mfagsa.blogspot.com

But it’s important to think about it.
Yes but not to over think it, if you hadn’t over thought it
we wouldn’t be in this situation.
To me, the only problem is that there are too many blogs
to read and so, I have reduced my findings down to a
select few.
www.delicious.com/twosugarcubes

I’m just thinking ahead. Finally the most important blog that you could read is to
do with the on going communication between students,
I can’t do that. student reps and the executives aimed at improving the
communication in the school. Please take some time to
read the posts made here as they relate to students of the
I have to, alright? I have to.
GSA, and the efforts to get our voices heard.

www.whatsgoingongsa.blogspot.com
ARTPORT
ARTPORT is the name of an artists collective “set up to harness
the power of art and imagination to help stabilise the climate”
On Monday 12th January some of its members supported an
anti aviation protest at Heathrow in conjunction with Climate
Rush, working in performance, music and visual art.
Essentially it got me thinking: I’m both politically active and an
artist. I’m looking for like-minded people to begin a Glasgow
branch of ARTPORT or similar, working for social and environ-
mental change through the medium of art.
Interested? Contact me, Kate, at rumtruffles@hotmail.com and
we can organise an informal meeting to chat about what people
would like to get from being in a collective like this.
CRITICAL MASS RIDES AGAIN
Critical Mass Glasgow is a monthly bicycle ride to celebrate
cycling, assert cyclists’ right to the road, challenge oil
dependency and the car culture. The Mass reclaims the roads
of Glasgow and creates a temporary car-free zone and a party
on wheels, beginning at George Square where we meet at 5.30
pm, on the first friday of every month. Critical Mass is an event–
not an organisation. It has no leaders or pre-organized route. It
takes place in hundreds of cities around the world. Don’t forget
your lights when it’s dark or your helmet if you’re sensible. Make
some noise and have fun!
A House of Lords’ ruling quashed an appeal by the Met Police,
giving Critical Mass a solid legal footing. They ruled it was a
“customary procession” and worked on a “follow my leader”
basis, and no ‘organisers’ could be sought to give police prior
notice of the route or hand over names and addresses.
This is fantastic news, as previously cyclists had been handed
notices claiming the rides were unlawful. It has now been
established that legally Critical Mass is a custom and has,
by definition, no organisers. Cyclists participating in Critical
Mass around the UK should feel safe in the knowledge that this
precedent has been set.
glasgowcriticalmass.org.uk
THESPIANS! THESPIANS! THESPIANS!
The Drama society was a prominent part
of life at the art school from 1922 to 1974,
starting with productions of elaborate masques
by Fra Newbury, which were designed, costumed
and performed by staff and students of the
GSA. In 1928 the dramatic club proclaimed
their objectives in the programme:
• To produce plays of artistic interest to
students.
• To promote the study of the Art of the
Theatre.
• To promote by performances and readings of
plays, the study of dramatic literature.
I believe that the thoughts of the President of
the Drama Society for the 1959 production of
Arthur Miller’s All My Sons to be apparent today:
“The primary aim of the club is to give
entertainment, it also allows us to develop an
activity, which should be part of every art school,
containing as it does so many skills for which
students are training.”
Joseph Incerti
Seeing as the art school doesn’t really present
many opportunites to get involved with many
other activities outside of school, it would be
great to get this society up and running again.
If you would be interesting in participating,
please get in touch with;
Thomas Leyland-Collins at
gsaperform@googlemail.com
There will be an opening ceremony, after
reading week to bring this to the attention of
anyone who may not have read this article, but
please do spread the news.
I look forward to seeing all of you enthusiasts
out there, of whom I’m sure there is no lack of.
 THANK YOU TO ALL
OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Maeve Redmond & Sam Bellacosa designed the new format and its layout.
Alec Farmer– the “Sans-Serif Sheriff”– designed the front cover.
Heather Purcell, Luke Neve, Katy Wallwork, Callum Bell, Steph Blackie,
Vicki McDonald, and Mr. Wright cut words, and added new ones, on one
long Saturday night.
The illustrations featured are by Chloe Chambers, Katy Wallwork,
Amelia Barratt, and Ellen T. Montoya.
James S. Wright gave us the lovely cartoon spread. His favourite animal is
the seal, because the seal goes “Art! Art! Art! Art!”
Thank you to Richard Anthony, formerly beardy librarian and aficianado at
large, who gave us the “Apocalypse No!” article.
Huge thanks to our SRC president Colin and vice-president Claire, without
whom we would have no funding nor club night.
Thank you to those who submitted written work:
Georgina Errington, Lois Whithead, Helene Zakariassen Skulstad,
Thomas Leyland Colins, Gabriella Evaristi Boyd

Thank you also to; Alex Dunst, Artur Van Balen, Emilia Muller Ginorio, Kate
Mackay, Christopher Raymond, Jakub Simcik and the Belfast folks.

Thank your tutors and technicians, because they are the heart of the GSA.

This is one of 500 copies, printed with money raised by our Gram club night.
Pass it on, share it with friends, spread the word.

We’d prefer illustations optimised for black and white, or greyscale.

Scans should be optimised at 300 dpi (or just hand it over if you can’t
figure out your scanner). Photos should follow the same prescription.

We are introducing a strict 700 word count on all written submissions–

because brevity is the soul of wit!

As always, the email address for all communications is

mammogram@gmx.co.uk