Central Saint Martins


St. Martin's School of Art

St. Martin's School of Art was opened in 1854 by the Reverend M. Mackenzie, an advocate of industrial education and vicar of St. Martin's-in-the-Fields. It became independent in 1859, and in 1894 was accorded recognition by London County Council. The school moved from Long Acre to Charing Cross Road in 1913. The present building was designed in 1938 by E P Wheeler and the site now includes several annexes. Over the years the school has attained an international reputation for teaching of fine art and design and in 1989 merged with the Central School of Art to form Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design. For most of the 1960’s and 1970’s St. Martin's was acknowledged as the leading London art school, producing the likes of Gilbert and George, who met there, and Richard Long as well as employing influential artists such as Anthony Caro and Barry Flanagan as lecturers. Central St. Martin's remains one of London's most revered art institutions with strong research and teaching departments in Fine Art, Fashion, Graphics, 3D design and Performance. It has undergone a cascade of recent developments, having already swallowed up both Drama Centre London in 1999 and the Byam Shaw School of Art in 2003 before the University of the Arts London's conception.


Central School of Arts & Crafts

The Central School of Arts & Crafts was opened by the London County Council in 1896 to provide part-time courses in and specialist art teaching for workers in craft industries and the applied arts. It was set up in what was temporary premises in Regent Street under the direction of the sculptor George Frampton and the architect William Richard Lethaby, who was appointed Principal in 1902. In 1908 it moved to a new imposing building in Southampton Row, Holborn. During the course of the School's one hundred-plus years of history, it has had many outstanding teachers and produced numerous distinguished graduates in both Fine and Applied Art. These include the architect Halsey Ricardo, wood engraver Noel Rooke and Eric Gill, a former student at the Central School who taught stone carving. The typographers Edward Johnston and Noel Rooke both innovators of the private press movement were instrumental in the teaching of book production which encompassed bookbinding, typography, calligraphy and illustration. Embroidery, needlecraft and costume design were all part of the curriculum and in 1919 ceramic design became part of the syllabus under Dora Billington. After the end of World War II the former Principal of Camberwell School of Arts & Crafts, William Johnstone introduced the notion of basic design taught by practising artists. On the staff at the time was Jesse Collins, a founder member of the design research unit and head of what was then called the department of book production. He insisted that all illustration students should acquire a knowledge of typography for when they graduated and entered the outside world. Students who no doubt benefited from such luminaries included Fellow students included Derek Birdsall, Terence Conran, David Hicks and Peter Firmin.

In January 1986 the school became a component college of the London Institute, formed by the Inner London Education Authority associating its art schools and specialist colleges of printing, fashion and distributive trades into a collegiate structure. In 1989 St. Martin's School of Art, another constituent college of the London Institute merged with the Central and the new name became Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, the whole being a constituent college of the University of the Arts London. This is a collegiate university and Europe's largest centre for education in art communication and design. It also owns the Cochrane Theatre in Holborn. It changed its name upon being awarded university status in 2004. The University currently incorporates Camberwell College of Arts, (formerly Camberwell School of Arts & Crafts), Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, Chelsea College of Art & Design, London College of Communication, London College of Fashion and Wimbledon College of Art.

Number of Artists referenced: 1,522