AbstractsEducation Research & Administration

This thesis is a written account of my analysis of the art education that I received during my undergraduate Interdisciplinary Art and Design BA(hon)s degree and University Campus Barnsley. The investigation and written thesis were undertaken as part of a Practice led research degree at Huddersfield University. The aim of the research was twofold. First to develop an understanding of the History of Art Education in the area of South Yorkshire and secondly to return to analyse the art work I made as part of my undergraduate degree. This study then became the focus of the series of practical Paintings and drawings which were the main focal point of the Master degree. The thesis is an account of my analysis of how my art practice developed in response to the practical type of education that I received. It identifies specific art makers and art movements that have had a direct impact on how my painting process matured and changed. The thesis goes on to identify the specific genre of literature that influenced my practical development and the use of metaphor in paintings and drawings . It then goes on to give a written account of the specific examples of visual metaphors in my practical Masters work and analyses their origins, continued development and what they represent. The issue of class and social equality is identified and the metaphor clearly dissected and explained. The thesis then outlines the development of the class metaphor into an education metaphor which represents my belief that a university education can aid the act of social mobility. This theory is justified by my experience of having returned to full time higher education as a working class mature woman and having achieved a level of social mobility which was aided by my gaining a first class BA(hon)s degree which enabled me to apply for and complete a Masters Degree.