Researching our collections: A recent placement at the ASCC

Anya shares her story

My name is Anya Staton, and I am currently studying for my undergraduate History degree at the University of York. Over the summer I completed an in-course placement at the University of the Arts London (UAL) Archives and Special Collections Centre (ASCC).

My role was to create authority records for ten artists who contributed to the Camerawork and Cockpit Gallery Archives. Authority Records are crucial components of an archive, providing researchers with background information on organisations involved in or contributors to the material. It was therefore a real privilege to have the opportunity to create ten authority records for these archives, knowing that my work will help aid researchers in the future.

The Camerawork and Cockpit Gallery Archives feature the work of many inspiring artists who contributed to these photography organisations in the 1980s and 1990s. Researching into the lives and work of these artists has been an incredible experience, opening my eyes to the ways art can be used to challenge prejudices or societal issues.

Digging into the Camerawork and Cockpit

From artists such as Peter Kennard, whose anti-war pieces have circulated the country since the 1970s, to Ajamu X, who has joyously celebrated the black queer body and experience within his art, the individuals whose authority records I have written have broken down barriers for decades. I take pride, that the work I have completed can be used to show future researchers the brilliance of these contributors to the Camerawork and Cockpit Gallery Archives.

This placement was a joy from start to finish. The constant help and guidance I received from my placement supervisors allowed me to feel confident in the work I was doing and take real pride in the final project. As mentioned previously, the opportunity to research such inspiring individuals was a real highlight, as was the experience to personally speak to some of them.

A number of my authority records include information directly from the artist themselves, who were kind enough to respond when I contacted them, and provided me with feedback and ways to improve my work. There is therefore so much that I have learnt from this experience, and key skills which I have developed; I have gained a critical awareness of the power of art as a political and cultural tool. It has been a privilege to recognise the ways these artists have shaped society as we know it, and I only hope that can continue in the future.