The School of Art, Architecture and Design is an

art school An art school is an educational institution with a primary focus on practice and related theory in the visual arts and design. This includes fine art – especially illustration, painting, contemporary art, sculpture, and graphic design. T ...

Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. The gate gave its name to ''Aldgate High Street'', the first stretch of the A11 road, that takes that name as it passes through the ancient, extramural Portsoken ...

that is part of

London Metropolitan University London Metropolitan University, commonly known as London Met, is a public university, public research university in London, England. The University of North London and London Guildhall University merged in 2002 to create the university. The Un ...

History

It was established in its present form in 2012 from the merger of the Sir John Cass Faculty of Art, Media and Design and the faculty of Architecture and Spatial Design of the

. It has a history stretching back to the 1800s via its various predecessor institutions. The school took its former name from philanthropist Sir

John Cass Sir John Cass (February 1661 – 5 July 1718) was an English merchant, Tory Member of Parliament and philanthropist. He was also a key figure in the Royal African Company, which was involved in the Atlantic slave trade. Biography Early li ...

(1661–1718), who helped establish funding for education in Aldgate and whose statue is displayed in the University: however, his name was removed from the institutional name in June 2020 because of his associations with the

slave trade Slave trade may refer to: * History of slavery - overview of slavery It may also refer to slave trades in specific countries, areas: * Al-Andalus slave trade * Atlantic slave trade ** Brazilian slave trade ** Bristol slave trade ** Danish sl ...

. The school is presently based at the University's refurbished Aldgate Campus which comprises three buildings, Goulston Street, Calcutta House and The Calcutta Small Annexe in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Studios

A studio or unit is a study group with a particular theme or focus taken by year two and three undergraduate art, architecture and design students and by postgraduate architecture students at The Cass as part of their studies. Studios are led by both academic staff and professional practitioners, sometimes linking to external organisations or project briefs. At the start of each academic year, the leaders of each studio present their studio's themes, position and approach to allow students to choose from a wide range of issues, methods of working and types of project. During the year the studios come together for major events such as Celebration Week – when students present work in progress to panels of external critics – and summer exhibitions.

Controversy over sale of Central House

Controversy erupted in late 2015 after London Metropolitan University unveiled plans to cut many of the Cass's signature programmes while moving the Cass from its traditional Aldgate location (which would be sold) to its Holloway campus; this plan attracted opposition from many of Britain's most renowned artists and designers. Senior members of the faculty, such as dean Robert Mull, resigned in protest over the decision and other initiatives, amid protests by students and staff. Despite the opposition, the sale went through in February the next year, though the building continued to be leased out to the university.

Location in Aldgate

In March 2019 London Metropolitan University formally announced that The Cass would remain in Aldgate. The decision, which was made following a series of discussions with students, staff, industry professionals and the local council, was formally ratified by the University's Board of Governors and announced to the School by the University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Lynn Dobbs

Name change

On 10 June 2020, the University announced that it would be dropping "Sir John Cass" from the school's institutional name with immediate effect. The school is now known as The School of Art, Architecture and Design, pending a further official name change. The decision was made in the wake of the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The protests and civil unrest began in Minneapolis as Reactions to the mu ...

, and calls by the

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

movement for the removal and revision of monuments and names commemorating historical figures connected with the

. The Vice-Chancellor "apologize that we haven't taken this step before now".

References

{{Coord, 51.5153103, N, 0.0739167, W, display=title Education in the City of London London Metropolitan University Aldgate Art schools in England Educational institutions established in 2012 Art schools in London Name changes due to the George Floyd protests 2012 establishments in England