There were several students that caught my eye when looking through Bolton’s Textile and Surface Design final year work. I felt that the diversity and quality of work overall was very high and was a testament to the hard work, drive and passion of both the students and the lecturers – particularly during these very difficult and challenging times.

I feel that the entire teaching team at Bolton have played an extremely important role supporting, motivating and inspiring the students. Pushing them to keep striving and driving. Challenging, encouraging and guiding the designers to develop a wide range of skills. Ultimately adapting their creativity to illustrate their unique signature strengths.

It was the quality of Hannah’s drawing and painting, her professionally presented and executed designs, coupled with the sheer volume of work and quirky colourways, that made Hannah my clear winner.

It will be exciting to see how Hannah manipulates and develops her work further using AVA. I sincerely hope that Hannah enjoyed the training course and it provides her with important additional skills required the industry. Not just learning the AVA software and its key features of; real-time repeating, colour separation, quick, simple and accurate colourways, but helping with industry knowledge, specific technical processes, all the way through to what types of jobs are out there.

Now more than ever, it is vital that we support our creative industries, and industry supports education and the next generation of up and coming designers. Allowing fresh talent to grow, input and help contribute to this fabulous creative industry we are part of.

I very much look forward to seeing what Hannah does next and wish her and all this years graduates all the very best for their future careers.

Debbie Buchan
Customer Service Director

We caught up with Hannah after her CST training to find out more:

“I have always been passionate about design, pattern and colour, and over the course of my degree, I have continued to develop this passion by learning new digital and applied techniques. I enjoy creating detailed and intricate drawings and paintings and see them come to life within my patterns. It is always my aim to create something out of the ordinary and be as unique as possible within my work, through my use of colour and imagery. I love creating patterns that surprise people, as well as bringing more colour to interior design.

My final collection, ‘Radical Classical’, encapsulates the decadence and scale of both the Italian Baroque and Rococo design period, as well as incorporating modern neoclassical design. The overall collection was inspired by my visits to Rome and Milan, and my personal interests in Italian history, architecture and art. Combining various drawing, painting and mark-making techniques, I created bold and colourful patterns directed towards the interior pattern market. The colour palette chosen for the collection are used to both reflect the rich, deep tones of Italian Baroque, whilst being opposed with ‘candy-like’ colours to create something modern and unique.

I had a lot of fun creating my final collection, having the freedom to produce something that I am proud of with the skills I developed studying at the University of Bolton.

Receiving the AVA CAD/CAM award was a fantastic surprise and privilege. Winning the award has given me the opportunity to explore new areas and develop my skills of the software. What I enjoyed most about the training was the friendly communication and atmosphere throughout, as well as the pace and quality of the tutorials provided. I believe it will certainly open up opportunities for me and the future of my design career.

My hope for the future is to continue to develop my portfolio and skills and being open to a range of opportunities. My future aim is to continue to establish and create designs that I am enthusiastic about. I feel fortunate to be apart of an industry that both challenges and allows me to experiment with pattern colour and design.”