Anna Colin, alumna, Arts Management graduate
How one graduate has put her degree to great use as she starts her careerAfter Anna Colin graduated from LSBU with a BA (Hons) Arts Management (now the BA (Hons) Arts and Festival Management), she found herself carrying on with lots of work she had started with us, even as she studied for a Masters at the Royal College of Art.
"While I was studying for my Masters, I carried on with a lot of the activities that I had started while at LSBU," says Anna.
"I was working as a London correspondent for Art Press, one of France's leading art magazine, and co-presenting a fortnightly radio show on sound and visual arts on Resonance FM, alongside fellow LSBU student Tobi Maier. Both activities owed a lot to LSBU; I had undertaken my work placement at Art Press and Tobi had done his at the London Musicians' Collective which oversaw the creation of Resonance FM."
Management focus
Since leaving LSBU, Anna has put the management focus of her undergraduate degree to excellent use in a number of ways.
"After graduating from the Royal College of Art, I worked on a three-month project at the arts organisation Grizedale Arts in the Lake District and a two-month placement at Iapsis (International Artists Studio Programme) in Sweden," she says. "I then spent a year freelancing, writing and working on a number of curatorial projects associated with sound, radio and more, both in Britain and abroad."
Curatorial thinking
In 2007, Anna joined Gasworks in South London as a curator, and she credits her time there as helping her to develop longer-term curatorial thinking and an inclination towards research projects.
"After four years and over 15 exhibitions working with British and international artists, I left Gasworks and London," she says. "I lived in Paris for 18 months, working as associate director of Bétonsalon – Centre for Art and Research, and as guest curator at la Maison Populaire in greater Paris. Then I moved back to London."
British Art Show
Since returning to London, Anna has co-founded and worked as co-director of Open School East, a non-fee-paying study programme for 12 associate artists and a space that is host to a wide-ranging public programme in East London.
More recently, alongside her work with Open School East, she has joined the Galeries Lafayette Foundation in Paris as associate curator and been appointed co-curator of the next British Art Show with Lydia Yee.
Impressive CV
With such an impressive CV, Anna is well-placed to pass on some advice to anyone considering taking up a place on our BA (Hons) Arts and Festival Management course. "Firstly, identify what you are driven by early on," she says. "By developing an agenda at the start of your career, you will have added focus and gain credibility. "Travelling to broaden your horizons is also a excellent idea, and you should try to do your placement abroad to expand your network. Most importantly, try and do your placement with people who inspire you. It's not only fulfilling, but they might become the greatest supporters of your work."