Working Men's College 160th anniversary
December 2014
Ruskin Gallery, Working Men's College, London NW1

An exhibition celebrating 160 years of the Working Men’s College through 160 postcards by alumni (WMC web page)

We were asked to produce an A5 postcard, and to write accompanying text on the back.  Mine read: 

"Before I discovered the Working Men's College in 2001, I'd never really engaged with art, but a succession of evening classes brought me to the Access for Art and Design course, and that launched me towards a Fine Art degree at Chelsea, early retirement from my day job, and a completely different life. 

I'm immensely grateful for my experience at WMC, and first thought of making some art that represented my path.  However, my time at WMC was immensely helped and influenced by the staff tutors - John Bowstead, Roger Jeffs, Tony Jennings, Nicola Styan, Dolly Thompsett, and Mike, and I therefore decided to submit something that recognized and honoured them. 

In December 2004, in my second year of the Access course, I helped organize a visit to Paris for Access students, and John Bowstead accompanied us and gave us a guided tour of Parisian art galleries.  This image shows John outside the Louvre on that trip."