Ealing Art College facts for kids
Ealing Art College was a special school in Ealing, London, England. It was also known as Ealing Technical College & School of Art. This college helped students learn many different skills. Today, the building where it used to be is part of the University of West London.
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A Look Back: Ealing Art College's Story
In the early 1960s, Ealing Art College was a busy place. It had many different departments. Students could study things like fashion, graphic design, and photography. They could also learn about industrial design and fine art. Many famous people went to this college. These included musicians like Freddie Mercury, Ronnie Wood, and Pete Townshend. The Oscar-winning artist Alan Lee also studied here.
Learning New Skills
The college offered special courses in the 1960s. These were like university degrees. Students could study subjects such as geography, economics, and law. Many students from Britain and other countries came to learn here. Teachers from other London universities also taught at Ealing.
There was also a School of Liberal Arts. This part of the college taught secretarial skills. It also offered language courses. Students could learn French, Spanish, German, and Russian. Some students even spent a semester in Geneva, Switzerland. This was a very new idea for schools at the time.
The Groundcourse: A Creative Experiment
A special two-year course called the "Groundcourse" was held at the college. This was a very new way to teach art. It was led by Roy Ascott and other artists. For a few years in the 1970s, the college had another campus. This was in Acton. It was home to the Schools of Librarianship and Management.
Famous People Who Studied Here
Many talented people went to Ealing Art College. Here are some of the well-known alumni.
Artists
- Vic Duppa-Whyte – He creates amazing pop-up books.
- Michael English – An artist and musician. He was part of the band Hapshash and the Coloured Coat.
- Gideon Gechtman – An artist and sculptor from Israel.
- Alan Lee – A famous English artist. He won an Oscar for his work on The Lord of the Rings movies.
- Arthur Ted Powell – He was an art director for advertisements and also an artist.
- Barbara Tate – An artist and author.
- Stephen Willats – A well-known artist.
- Fiona Adams – A photographer. She took the famous "Jumping Beatles" picture. John Lennon chose it for their 1963 EP Twist and Shout.
Musicians
- Pete Townshend – The lead guitarist for the famous band The Who.
- Freddie Mercury – The amazing lead singer of the band Queen.
- Tim Staffell – He was the lead singer and bassist for Smile. This band was an early version of Queen.
- Roger Ruskin Spear – He played saxophone and used robots in The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band.
- Ronnie Wood – A guitarist for the bands Faces and The Rolling Stones.
Writers and Journalists
- Michael Molloy – He used to be the editor of the Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror newspapers.
- Robert Rankin – A best-selling author, artist, and sculptor.
- Michael Lawrence – He wrote many books for children and young adults.
- John Van der Kiste – An author. His novel Always There is partly based on his time as a student at Ealing.
