The Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (known colloquially as LICA or The Lancaster Institute) is an academic institution, art school, and arm of the

University of Lancaster , mottoeng = Truth lies open to all , established = , endowment = £13.9 million , budget = £317.9 million , type = Public , city = Bailrigg, City of Lancaster , country = England , coor = , campus = Bailrigg , faculty = 1 ...

, that delivers research and teaching in fields of contemporary art and design; including in the subject areas of

Fine Art In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...

Theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

Design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

, and

Film studies Film studies is an academic discipline that deals with various theoretical, historical, and critical approaches to cinema as an art form and a medium. It is sometimes subsumed within media studies and is often compared to television studies. ...

. The institute also houses two research centres: ''Insight'' and ''Imagination''. LICA has a close working relationship with the public arts organisation: ''Lancaster Arts''. Notable academics include the Professors;

Tim Etchells Tim Etchells (born 1962) is an English artist and writer based in Sheffield and London. Etchells is the artistic director of Forced Entertainment, an experimental performance company founded in 1984. He has published several works of fiction, ...

Charlie Gere Charlie Gere is a British academic who is professor of media theory and history at The Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts, The University of Lancaster and previously, director of research at the Institute for Cultural Research at The U ...

Christopher Frayling Sir Christopher John Frayling (born 25 December 1946) is a British educationalist and writer, known for his study of popular culture. Early life and education Christopher Frayling was born in Hampton, a suburb of London, in affluent circumstance ...

KCMG KCMG may refer to * KC Motorgroup, based in Hong Kong, China * Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, British honour * KCMG-LP, radio station in New Mexico, USA * KCMG, callsign 1997-2001 of Los Angeles radio station KKLQ (FM) ...

, Kevin Roberts,

Gerry Harris Gerald William Harris (8 October 1935 – 28 July 2020) was an English professional Association football, footballer. He spent the majority of his league career with Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolverhampton Wanderers, with whom he won two l ...

, and Rachel Cooper OBE; notable alumni include the television presenter

James May James Daniel May (born 16 January 1963) is an English television presenter and journalist. He is best known as a co-presenter of the motoring programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' alongside Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond from ...

, the composer Andrew Ford, the actor

Andy Serkis Andrew Clement Serkis (born 20 April 1964) is an English actor, director, and producer. He is best known for his performance capture roles comprising motion capture acting, animation, and voice work for computer-generated characters such as Goll ...

, and winner of the BP Portrait Prize, Peter Monkman. With a heavy research focus, in 2014, 100% of the research output was ranked internationally excellent or world leading. Teaching at LICA is ranked within the global top 100 universities, offering Art and Design courses, by the QS World Rankings., and is ranked consistently within the top 5 undergraduate art schools in the UK; ranked 2nd in 2014, and 3rd in 2015 and 2016.

Departments

The Lancaster Institute is composed of four creative disciplines; these are, Art, Design, Film, and Theatre. A decision to expand the Department of Fine Art was enacted on in 2013, and the department accepted over 50% more applicants than the previous cohort, with an even larger intake proposed for the following year. The undergraduate Art course, with a strong theoretical element and with grade requirements of AAB, attracts highly academic students; these are some of the highest requirements for undergraduate Fine Art in the UK, just below the AAA requirement of The Ruskin School of Art. Recent graduates have proceeded to postgraduate art institutions, including

The 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 off ...

and The Royal Academy Schools.

Research

Insight Research Centre

Insight is a creative research centre at

Lancaster University Lancaster University (legally The University of Lancaster) is a public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several pla ...

specialising in theoretical, lab-based, and studio research in the disciplinary bases of, Fine Art, Theatre, Film, Dance and Sound. Opened in 2014, the research focus is on ‘making meaning in the arts’ and highlighting arts' significance and value in society. Speaking at the launch, the artist,

Grayson Perry Grayson Perry (born 1960) is an English contemporary artist, writer and broadcaster. He is known for his ceramic vases, tapestries, and cross-dressing, as well as his observations of the contemporary arts scene, and for dissecting British "pre ...

noted how judgements from critics of the arts are often of an “autistic” nature; refusing to seek meaning in the production and research of contemporary art, highlighting the importance of the institutes research activities.

Imagination Research Centre

The Imagination Research Centre conducts applied and theoretical research into design interactions. Research is centred around a combination of practice-based methods arising from design and the arts with science and social science methods, addressing contemporary challenges such as

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

and

urban density Urban density is a term used in urban planning and urban design to refer to the number of people inhabiting a given urbanized area. As such it is to be distinguished from other measures of population density. Urban density is considered an importan ...

Highwire Doctoral Training Centre

The HighWire Doctoral Training Centre is a cross-disciplinary Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) focusing on the

Digital Economy The digital economy is a portmanteau of digital computing and economy, and is an umbrella term that describes how traditional Brick and mortar, brick-and-mortar economic activities (production, distribution, trade) are being transformed by Interne ...

. Research is projected as post-disciplinary, and attempting to find a creative fusion of the three underlying disciplines:

Computer Science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

Management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

and

which underpin creative problem solving in relation to the digital economy.

The Creative Exchange

The Creative Exchange is a collaborative research and knowledge sharing collective between

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...

and

, which produces research and conferences on areas of designing experiences,

digital prototyping Digital Prototyping gives conceptual design, engineering, manufacturing, and sales and marketing departments the ability to virtually explore a complete product before it's built. Industrial designers, manufacturers, and engineers use Digital Prot ...

and communication innovation. There is a particular focus on research of the digital public space with a significant proportion of research activities geared towards collaborative projects in this area.

Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University

Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University (LA) is Lancaster University's public arts organisation. The organisation presents performances, for the public, staff and students, through its campus venues the Nuffield Theatre, Lancaster Concerts Series ...

, formerly Live at LICA, is the institute's public arts organisation made up of the Peter Scott Gallery, the Nuffield Theatre and the Lancaster International Concert Series. In 2009, these three organisations were combined as one department by the University, initially termed ‘The Public Arts’ but later renamed ‘Live at LICA’ before becoming 'Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University' in 2015.
LICA About Us; Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University Retrieved 2016-03-22.

International Concert Series

Lancaster International Concert Series is the main provider of classical music in north Lancashire and Cumbria. Concerts are held within the Great Hall. Between October and March each year the series offers a varied diet of music which includes: orchestral concerts, chamber music, events for young people, jazz, family concerts and world music.

Art and Antique Collections

The Peter Scott Gallery holds significant collections of art and antique objects including a significant collection of Chinese and Japanese Art, as well as a collection of 20th century art which includes work by artists from the

St Ives School The St Ives School refers to a group of artists living and working in the Cornish town of St Ives.Sir Terry Frost Sir Terence Ernest Manitou Frost Royal Academician, RA (13 October 1915 – 1 September 2003) was a British abstract artist, who worked in Newlyn, Cornwall. Frost was renowned for his use of the Cornish light, colour and shape to start a ne ...

Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Wilhelmina Barns-Graham Order of the British Empire, CBE (8 June 1912 – 26 January 2004) was one of the foremost British Abstract art, abstract artists, a member of the influential Penwith Society of Arts. Early life Wilhelmina Barns-Graha ...

Barbara Hepworth Dame Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth (10 January 1903 – 20 May 1975) was an English artist and sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism and in particular modern sculpture. Along with artists such as Ben Nicholson and Naum Gabo, Hepworth was a leadi ...

and William Scott. Among other British artists whose work is represented are Norman Adams,

Patrick Caulfield Patrick Joseph Caulfield, (29 January 1936 – 29 September 2005), was an English painter and printmaker known for his bold canvases, which often incorporated elements of photorealism within a pared-down scene. Examples of his work are ''Po ...

Elisabeth Frink Dame Elisabeth Jean Frink (14 November 1930 – 18 April 1993) was an English sculptor and printmaker. Her ''Times'' obituary noted the three essential themes in her work as "the nature of Man; the 'horseness' of horses; and the divine in ...

, Kenneth Martin and

Winifred Nicholson ''From Bedroom Window, Bankshead'', date unknown, private collection. Typical of Nicholson's impressionist work, combining still life with landscape. Rosa Winifred Nicholson (née Roberts; 21 December 1893 – 5 March 1981) was a British p ...

. Recent acquisitions have included works by

Andy Goldsworthy Andy Goldsworthy (born 26 July 1956) is an English sculptor, photographer, and environmentalist who produces site-specific sculptures and land art situated in natural and urban settings. Early life Goldsworthy was born in Cheshire on 26 J ...

Peter Howson Peter Howson OBE (born 27 March 1958) is a Scottish painter. He was a British official war artist in 1993 during the Bosnian War. Early life Peter Howson was born in London of Scottish parents and moved with his family to Prestwick, A ...

and Albert Irvin. The university collection also includes prints by significant European artists such as Dürer, Miró,

Ernst Ernst is both a surname and a given name, the German, Dutch, and Scandinavian form of Ernest. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Adolf Ernst (1832–1899) German botanist known by the author abbreviation "Ernst" * Anton Ernst (1975- ...

, Mondrian and

Vasarely Victor Vasarely (; born Győző Vásárhelyi, ; 9 April 1906 – 15 March 1997) was a Hungarian-French artist, who is widely accepted as a "grandfather" and leader of the Op art movement. His work entitled ''Zebra'', created in 1937, is consid ...

, and the Lancaster University Special Collections holds a collection of

artists books Artists' books (or book arts or book objects) are work of art, works of art that utilize the form of the book. They are often published in small editions, though they are sometimes produced as one-of-a-kind objects. Overview Artists' books hav ...

and an archive of

pop-up books The term pop-up book is often applied to any book with three-dimensional pages, although it is properly the umbrella term for movable book, pop-ups, tunnel books, transformations, volvelles, flaps, pull-tabs, pop-outs, pull-downs, and more, each ...

. The collection also includes a number of antiquities, many of which are on permanent display in the John Chambers Ceramics Room of The Peter Scott Gallery. The collection includes Roman, Greek and Egyptian vessels in ceramic and glass. Examples of items from the collection include a Roman stylus, an Egyptian papyrus fragment from a

Book of the Dead The ''Book of the Dead'' ( egy, 𓂋𓏤𓈒𓈒𓈒𓏌𓏤𓉐𓂋𓏏𓂻𓅓𓉔𓂋𓅱𓇳𓏤, ''rw n(y)w prt m hrw(w)'') is an ancient Egyptian funerary text generally written on papyrus and used from the beginning of the New Kingdom ...

. The Peter Scott Gallery also houses one of the most significant collections of Pilkington's Tile and Pottery Company in the UK.

History

The Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts was formed in 2005, with the aim of creating a ‘critical mass’ of arts subjects. Since this merger, Lancaster’s Art degree has maintained top ten positions in numerous league tables, and is currently ranked third nationally in the

Complete University Guide Three national rankings of universities in the United Kingdom are published annually – by ''The Complete University Guide'', ''The Guardian'' and jointly by ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times''. Rankings have also been produced in the past ...

Buildings

The department is based between four buildings sited on the north side of the

Bailrigg Bailrigg is the campus of Lancaster University, in the City of Lancaster, Lancashire, England, south of the centre of Lancaster. The student radio station Bailrigg FM is named after the site. History Bailrigg was a hamlet in the township o ...

Campus of

. The main building, known as The LICA Building was opened in 2010, designed by the architect James Jones of

Sheppard Robson Sheppard Robson (previously Richard Sheppard, Robson & Partners ) is a British architecture firm, founded in 1938 by Sir Richard Herbert Sheppard, with offices in London, Manchester, and Glasgow]. It was particularly influential in the 1950s– ...

, and houses purpose build performance spaces, installation spaces, lecture spaces, seminar rooms, design laboratories and art studios as well as several small outbuildings used as student meeting rooms. In 2011 the Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA) became the first higher education building and only the second building ever to receive a BREEAM Outstanding rating post-completion. The main Art building is the Bowland Annex, adjacent to the LICA Building, housing the rest of the Fine Art studios, an installation space, wood workshop, and practical teaching spaces. The Great Hall Complex houses the Peter Scott Gallery, named after Sir Peter Markham Scott, the Nuffield Theatre, the Great Hall, The Jack Hilton Music Rooms, a purpose built theatre production workshop, rehearsal spaces, and a Life Drawing Studio. The Jack Hylton Music Rooms were named after the entertainer

Jack Hylton Jack Hylton (born John Greenhalgh Hilton; 2 July 1892 – 29 January 1965) was an English pianist, composer, band leader and impresario. Hylton rose to prominence during the British dance band era, being referred as the "British King of Jazz" a ...

. When it was opened in 1965, it was hoped that the rooms would make Lancaster into the music centre of the North West. The Nuffield Theatre, a black-box theatre, is one of the largest and most adaptable professional studio theatres in Europe. It presents public performances in the fields of theatre,

contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in ...

and live art from some of the best-known and respected companies from the UK and abroad. The academic offices of the institute are based in the LICA Building,

References

{{Authority control Art schools in England