HOLD IT! The Art of the Modern Medal: British Art Medal Society Student Medal Project

About

The Student Medal Project, now in its 21st year, is a success story for bringing the art of the modern medal into the art college curriculum, whether in sculpture, metal work or jewellery. It is an introduction to the age-old art of bronze casting, where students themselves each create a small but powerful work of two-sided relief sculpture, which can be held in the hand. This exhibition takes us from the political to the personal, the abstract to the mainstream, as the students - and some professional makers - express their creativity and craftsmanship in the surprising medium of the modern art medal. The British Art Medal Society, which is behind this Project, is based at the British Museum. It also commissions medals every year for sale to its members, arranges lectures and conferences. At the British Museum can be found the country's wide-ranging collection of modern art medals, including student medals it has purchased. Each year colleges around the UK are invited to participate, plus an academy from abroad, this year, the University of Sofia, Bulgaria. The culmination of the Project is the annual exhibition, which in 2014 will be held at the New Ashgate Gallery in Farnham, Surrey.