Hornsey College of Art (a.k.a. Hornsey School of Art) was a college in

Crouch End Crouch End is an area of North London, approximately from the City of London in the western half of the borough of Haringey. It is within the Hornsey postal district (N8). It has been described by the BBC as one of "a new breed of urban villag ...

in the

London Borough of Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation o ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The HCA was "an iconic British art institution, renowned for its experimental and progressive approach to art and design education".

Background

The college was founded in 1880 as the Hornsey School of Arts by Charles Swinstead, an artist and teacher who lived at Crouch End, Hornsey. The college passed to his son, Frank Swinstead, following his death in 1890. During the inter-war years the schools curriculum was composed of Fine Art, Advertising Design and Industrial Applied Art. It continued its day-time classes during World War II and was one of only two London art schools that did not vacate the capital during the blitz. It became Hornsey College of Arts and Crafts in 1955. It survived until 1973 as a named entity, when it joined Enfield Technical College and Hendon Technical College to become

Middlesex Polytechnic Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries of ...

. The Polytechnic later became Middlesex University.

The 1968 sit-in

During 1968, the college was the scene of protests when students occupied the Crouch End Hill site. Students attending the multi-site college convened to discuss the withdrawal of Student Union funds and resolved to sit-in. During this period they effected a temporary administration of the college, and called for major and consultative review of the art curriculum, supported by sympathetic academic staff and visiting artists. They offered a major critique of the education system at the time. Some of these documents were presented as part of a project called The Hornsey Project. The college was repossessed by local authorities at the beginning of the summer break. Hornsey achieved notoriety because of the scale of the all-night protests and sit-ins, which were copied in similar art schools around the UK. During the six weeks that the sit-in lasted, Hornsey became the focus of debate about the method of art education and teaching in Britain. Hornsey was, and still is, afforded the blame for these disturbances that swept the student fraternity nationwide.

Kim Howells Kim Scott Howells (born 27 November 1946) is a Welsh Labour Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Pontypridd from 1989 to 2010, and held a number of ministerial positions within the Blair and Brown governments. Biography ...

, a student, and Nick Wright, then president of the Students' Union on a sabbatical year, initiated the sit-in. Howells later became a trade union official and a minister in

Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...

's government. After the protests,

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, then a sociology lecturer, was dismissed from the college. ''The Hornsey Affair'', a book by students and staff at Hornsey, was published in 1969 by

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year. A documentary film, ''Our Live Experiment is Worth More Than 3,000 Textbooks'', about the Hornsey sit-in was directed by

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for Granada Television and transmitted in 1969. Patricia Holland's Hornsey Film "reconstructs the arguments and succession of events that led to the occupation of Hornsey College of Art between May and July 1968". Part of the Hornsey Archive is currently held at Middlesex University in the Sheppard Library as one of their special collections. Hornsey Weep In 1

In April 1969 a follow-up mock funeral procession, performed by students of the art school, declared "the death of Hornsey Hope".

Recent use of the building

Middlesex University vacated the Crouch End building in the 1980s. The building was then used by the TUC as a training and conference centre. Since 2008, the building has been a part of Coleridge Primary School, upon its expansion to four-form entry.

Notable alumni and teachers

Viv Albertine Viviane Katrina Louise Albertine (born 1 December 1954) is an Australian-born British musician, singer, songwriter and writer. She is best known as the guitarist for the punk band the Slits from 1977 until 1982, with whom she recorded two studio ...

(b.1954), musician''Clothes, Clothes, Clothes, Music, Music, Music, Boys, Boys, Boys''; Viv Albertine; Faber & Faber 2014, p. 62 * Stuart Brisley (b.1933), artist and teacher *

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Neville Brody Neville Brody, (born 23 April 1957) is an English graphic designer, typographer and art director. He is known for his work on ''The Face'' magazine (1981–1986), ''Arena'' magazine (1987–1990), and designing record covers for artists such a ...

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, writer and illustrator *

Eileen Chandler Eileen Chandler ( Harris; 10 June 1904 – 28 January 1993) was a British painter and illustrator, notable for her portrait work. Biography Chandler was born in London and studied art at the Hornsey School of Art from where she won a scholarshi ...

(1904-1993), portrait painter *

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Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It o ...

professor *

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(b.1944), musician (Kinks) * Lynsey de Paul (1948-2014), singer-songwriter *

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(1928-2012), composer *

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(1894–1991), portrait painter *

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(1927-2012), film director * Violet Fuller (1920-2006), artist * Hannah Gavron (1936-1965), sociologist *

Stuart Goddard Stuart Leslie Goddard, better known as Adam Ant (born 3 November 1954), is an English singer, musician, and actor. He gained popularity as the lead singer of new wave group Adam and the Ants and later as a solo artist, scoring 10 UK top ten ...

(b.1954) (Adam Ant), musician *

Doc Rowe David "Doc" Rowe (born 8 December 1944) is a folklorist, author and film-maker who lives and works in the United Kingdom. A graduate of Hornsey College of Arts, he is a prominent lecturer on and advocate for folk traditions and folk music. De ...

(b.1944), folklorist *

James Herbert James John Herbert, OBE (8 April 1943 – 20 March 2013) was an English horror writer. A full-time writer, he also designed his own book covers and publicity. His books have sold 54 million copies worldwide, and have been translated into 34 l ...

(1943-2013), novelist * Adrian Hill (1895–1977), artist and broadcaster *

Kathleen Horsman Kathleen Finlay Horsman (1911–1999) was a British artist, potter and teacher who, although born and brought up in London, spent the majority of her career in Edinburgh. Biography Horsman was born in London and attended Hornsey High School be ...

(1911–1999), potter *

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(b.1932), artist *

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(b.1932), artist *

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(b.1937), artist *

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(1935-2001), artist *

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(b.1930), artist * Stefana McClure (b.1959), artist *

(b.1932), academic and writer *

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as a Japanese prisoner of war * Eric Watson (1955-2012), photographer * Richard Wentworth (b.1947), artist *

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(b.1945), visual effects director and film director * Richard Wilson (b.1953), sculptor * Theresa Wiseman (b.1956), footballer and animator * Pulak Biswas (1941-2013), Indian illustrator *

The Raincoats The Raincoats are a British experimental post-punk band. Ana da Silva (vocals, guitar) and Gina Birch (vocals, bass) formed the group in 1977 while they were students at Hornsey College of Art in London. Signed to the label Rough Trade, the ...

, rock band, members

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and

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hornsey College Of Art Educational institutions established in 1880 1880 establishments in England Art schools in London Education in the London Borough of Haringey Middlesex University