MA Socially Engaged Photography and Socially Engaged Art Open Day

Open Eye Gallery is delighted to be hosting another special hybrid MA open day event, with our partners the University of Salford.

This year we are hosting 30-minute slots to meet with people interested in either our joint MA in socially engaged photography course and/ or the MA in socially engaged art programme, both with the University of Salford.

You can meet us in person in the gallery, or you can meet a member of the team online if this is more accessible for you.

How to book

Once you have booked your ticket here on Eventbrite, we will be in touch to confirm your 30-minute slot, whether you want to meet in person or online, and which of the courses you’d like to discuss. Spaces are limited. If you no longer plan to attend, please return your ticket through Eventbrite.

You will get to speak to either Open Eye Gallery’s Director Sarah Fisher, Head of social practice and programme Leader of the courses, Liz Wewiora, a recent socially engaged photography graduate and new project developer for children and young people at the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society) development producer Producer, Anna Wijnhoven or freelance artist and socially engaged art graduate Rachel Holliday.

As we expand our collaborations with the MA art and design programmes at the University of Salford we are excited to welcome people interested in both courses along to hear more about them from one of the team.

More about the courses

Socially Engaged Photography

You will work with active practitioners, community groups and academics to rethink the role of photography in society today, to develop your creative practice and your professional profile.

The course will give students support in producing creative projects with both arts and non-arts commissioners in mind, exploring how to create socially engaged art that is meaningful to both audiences and participants. Students will develop and deliver live projects with partners working in health, youth, community and justice, all embedded within a critically engaged and ethical framework.

They will provide professional practice surgeries, from understanding legal, ethical and safeguarding frameworks, to developing your professional profile and will have some joint teaching sessions with the Socially Engaged Practice students.

You will have opportunities to engage directly with national debates and Open Eye Gallery’s national network for socially engaged photographic practice.

Socially Engaged Art

Do you want to empower communities through the power of art? Similar to our Socially engaged photography MA, the Socially engaged arts prorgramme seeks to do this, through collaboration and participation with people, through co-authored and co-produced activities that helps to define an environment, attitude or experience. Often the process of these interactions is as important as the visual artworks produced.

Students will be supported to consider pressing social issues such as inclusion, mental health, homelessness, regeneration and sustainability amongst many others to enable students of this course to explore a wider variety of real-life scenarios. Students will then be supported to apply an artistic approach and understanding to developing conversations and debate around these areas with relevant stakeholders within a community.

We are also interested to hear from individuals who may be exploring curatorial or producing roles within social practice as well as artist delivery roles.

You’ll work with communities or projects that have a story to share, from youth clubs and local organisations, to cultural groups and institutions, such as ourselves here at Open Eye Gallery, the Turnpike Gallery in Leigh and many more. You will use your arts practice to explore these compelling stories through the development of participatory events within this community, before potentially disseminating these findings to a wider populace, in a variety of forms. You’ll also gain an arts education relating to social issues, learning to use research and reflection to guide your creative process and create art that shines a spotlight on causes that matter.