The Royal Academy Schools staged its annual Premium Interim Projects exhibition recently to show the development of students work during their second year of study. The show provided a unique opportunity to view the exciting new work by the artists at the interim point of their three year postgraduate fine art studies at the UK’s most prestigious art school. Several of the works on display included those produced using Epson large format printers and projectors, accessible to the students in the on-site Epson sponsored Digital Media Suite.

Epson provides state-of-the-art large format digital printing and AV projection technologies to the Schools so students can experiment with a broad range of media and materials to produce their art works. Through this experimentation with Epson technologies students are able to develop their creativity and explore the possibilities that both old and new technologies offer to them.

All the students have worked with Epson’s large format printer and/or projectors at some time during their course. Included in the exhibition were:

• Caroline Abbotts used Epson films printed on a large format inkjet printer to produce negative images of the starry sky taken from Earth’s North Celestial Pole. The Epson films are processed manually in huge handmade developing tanks and transferred to glass sheets that are propped against the gallery walls in layered compositions.
• Rebecca Ackroyd displayed a large curved work made of two closely-positioned freestanding panels carrying a vast digitally printed image of a close-up of a luxury white bath towel.
• Matt Ager combined digitally printed photographic images with clothing, found objects and industrial materials such as plastic sheeting to create wall-based assemblages.
• Josie Cockram utilised two Epson projectors to synchronise moving images onto a floating tent-like screen that occupied a centre stage position within one of RA’s historic galleries.
• Max Prus combined large painted canvases that contained inkjet-printed collaged details with sound works, texts and digitally printed cut-out sculptural figures.

Mark Hampson, Head of Materials Processes at the RA, recognising the strengths of the collaboration that exists between the Schools and Epson and its affect upon the exhibition, says, “The creative inventiveness and breadth of approaches evident in this year’s Premiums Show demonstrated the importance of top quality workshop facilities and equipment. The RA Schools is able, through the generosity and sponsorship of Epson, to offer its students amazing access to the latest developments in digital image making, audio visual display systems and unparalleled expertise in technical advancements in printing. The influence of these opportunities is extremely apparent in the work of our students who always impress with their abilities to utilise, redefine and subvert the facilities they are exposed to. Our unique collaborative relationship with Epson is a fantastic experience where industry and art, commerce and culture merge with incredible results.”