ECS postgraduate student Matilde Boccanera recently curated the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy’s student arts exhibition at The Exchange.

After recently finishing her Masters in International Child Studies at KCL Matilde applied for the role of student curator for the Faculty’s annual student showcase of art. Photography, illustration, poetry, music and installations formed part of the exhibition, which ran on 26 September 2019. The fusion of diverse backgrounds, experiences, cultures and traditions in this collection offered a glimpse into our ever-changing world.

Matilde applied for the role after being exposed to a variety of projects on her degree course aimed at linking art with academic subjects. In 2018, she also completed the university’s extracurricular module ‘A Beautiful Mind’, a series of seminars delivered by leading professionals and researchers who explore issues in mental health in radically different contexts. The module gave Matilde an understanding of how creativity, imagination and colours could be combined to help the public better comprehend complex ongoing global issues. Matilde says:

‘When I saw the opportunity…I thought I could contribute to the field of arts and culture by allowing students to express their views on current social, political, and environmental problems through the universal form of art.’

Matilde received many applications from students across the Faculty. The work she selected was diverse, but each piece had to link back to the student’s course, and the meaning behind it needed to inspire and challenge the audience. All of the artwork she says, ranging from photographs, gifs, poems and objects, were of the highest quality:

‘I was struck by a few, including Jane Iung's watercolor art piece titled "In Limbo", which intelligently depicts the position of the UK in the current Brexit agenda. The colours used, the positions of the elements, and the dominating figure of the woman are all supported by political theories, and all have a meaning that collectively make this piece incredibly eye-catching.’

Supervised by The Exchange’s Engagement Manager, Jayne Peake, Matilde learnt how to handle the open call, applications and selection processes. The role enabled Matilde to further her administrative, interpersonal and organisation skills, and demonstrate her passion for modern art:

‘I especially enjoyed planning how to fit all the artworks in The Exchange space…ensuring that artworks neatly flowed from one to the other and that visitors could easily proceed along a logical line of thought.  

I would definitely recommend students at King's to engage in as many extracurricular activities as possible, in order to meet new people, and boost their academic journey through interdisciplinary projects such as this.’