On Monday 29 May 2017 the University of Sydney released a document to staff outlining the future state of Rozelle’s Sydney College of the Arts (SCA). Their intention, to build on SCA’s reputation as an internationally renowned art school, and enable focus on the core business of teaching, learning and research. As of 1 July 2017 SCA will become a part of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS); retaining it’s name as a department within the School of Literature, Art, and Media (SLAM) in FASS, thereby confirming its ongoing place within the broader visual arts community.
Courtesy Artereal Gallery, Sydney
The advantages for SCA include opportunities of interdisciplinary research and teaching created by proximity to the many relevant disciplines within SLAM and beyond, without the financial overheads associated with faculty status. Further, these disciplines will be able to enhance their work through greater engagement with the visual arts.
The arts school will be relocated to the University’s main campus at Camperdown/Darlington, taking residence at the Old Teachers College (OTC) and the neighbouring Badham building. Their closeness in proximity enables the SCA community to be maintained and encourage students to share ideas and collaborate with each other. Students will be able to explore a broader range of electives and interact with a broader range of concepts; whilst preserving it’s distinctive qualities.
During 2018 these premises will be repurposed to ensure appropriate facilities are ready to receive students, following intensive collaboration between SCA staff, academic colleagues and Campus Infrastructure Services.
SCA is expected to begin teaching from the OTC in Semester 1, 2019. The move has been phased to allow sufficient time to plan the new spaces and ensure the ongoing provision of teaching to current students at Rozelle until the commencement of Semester 1, 2019. This means that students commencing in visual arts degree programs in 2018 will begin their studies at the Rozelle campus with subsequent relocation to the Camperdown/Darlington campus in 2019. In Semester 2, 2017, student information sessions will be held to keep students informed and involved and a standing consultation session with elected student representatives has been planned.
The plan foresees that the new SCA will cater for 360 to 425 students, and employ a staff of up to 18 academics and 12 technical and support staff however there are no dedicated teaching rooms. At this stage SCA will need to utilise existing teaching space across the Camperdown campus; the University ensures that ‘should the design consultation and drafting process reveal a need for more space, this is something that could be discussed’. There will be dedicated spaces for offices, workshops, studios and a gallery.
