Plymouth College of Art has appointed Professor Paul Fieldsend-Danks as interim principal and chief executive for the 2021/22 academic year.
The professor is currently academic dean and leads the college’s School of Arts and Media, School of Design and Communication and School of Critical and Cultural Studies.
Prof Fieldsend-Danks, who has led the college’s undergraduate, postgraduate and further education portfolios, succeeds Prof Andrew Brewerton, who is stepping down after 11 years in the job.
PCA chiefs said Prof Fieldsend-Danks’ appointment ensures stability for staff and students and a continuation of the vision that has seen the independent, university-sector art school, established in 1856, work in partnership with national organisations such as Tate and the British Council, retaining a broad focus for excellence in creative education.
With more than 20 years of experience of academic leadership in higher education, the professor is a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts (RSA) and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA).
Prior to joining PCA in 2016, he was head of taught postgraduate awards and senior lecturer in fine art at Norwich University of the Arts, course leader for BA fine art at University of Bath/Swindon College School of Art and Design, and Lecturer for BA fine art at Oxford Brookes University.
Prof Brewerton said: “I’m delighted at Paul’s appointment. I’m confident that the distinctive community, ethos and values of this great art school will continue to thrive under his leadership, and its profile continue to develop nationally and internationally.
“Paul has played a formative role in the redesign and validation of the college’s entire undergraduate curriculum for launch in September.
“He has a visionary commitment to innovation in the student experience, embedding creative learning and social justice within each interdisciplinary specialism, within an extraordinarily rich and diverse studio and workshop environment.”
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David Noyce, chair of governors at PCA, said: "Thanks to the legacy of strong leadership and culture of accountability and ambition that Prof Andrew Brewerton leaves Plymouth College of Art with, the stage is set for Paul to ensure that our message, ethos and values continue to resonate far beyond the South West of England, nationally and internationally.
“Paul will lead Plymouth College of Art through the upcoming national multi-site exhibition, British Art Show 9, through the 2021 Making Futures biennial symposium of contemporary craft and maker movements, and out of the pandemic that has made higher education more essential than ever for students who are committed to using creativity to transform their communities and future careers. On behalf of the board of Governors at Plymouth College of Art we look forward to working closely with Paul over the coming year.”
Prof Brewerton will retire from his role heading the independent, university-sector art school in July 2021, bringing a 27-year career in academic leadership to an end. PCA’s board of governors will now begin putting in place arrangements to appoint a successor.
During Prof Brewerton’s time as principal, PCA transferred from the further education to higher education sectors, in 2014, doubled its student numbers, and gained degree-awarding powers at BA and MA levels.
Under his leadership the college also constructed new craft, design and fabrication workshops and created Fab Lab Plymouth - establishing Palace Court and Palace Studios as its pre-degree campus. PCA also founded the Plymouth School of Creative Arts, now Millbay Academy, at the Red House.
