New Research Students join The Prince's School

Although we ordinarily have two or three new research students join The School each academic year, last year the quality of applicants was such that we offered places to six MPhil/PhD and PhD students. This term they have joined The School and in getting to know them and more about their research it is clear that they are a great addition to the Research Department and to The School, workshop and studio. Their diverse practice and topics are indicative of the breadth of research currently being done at The School and we feel confident that they will make a lasting contribution to the practice and study of the traditional arts. New students and their research projects:

Aleksejevas Aleksandras

Sasha is a sculptor who makes bronze icons. His research will look at the origin and meaning of sacral relief sculpture and he plans to write a manual for iconographical sculptors explaining how to make a bronze icon and encouraging a new appreciation of the importance of sacred relief within the context of contemporary iconography.

Christabel Anderson

Christabel, who is an MA graduate from the School, continues to deepen her research into the early iconography of Britain and Ireland focusing specifically on developing the practice of icon painting, illumination and enamelling. She is working to create an appropriate iconography for the early British and Irish saints based on research of remaining late antique and medieval iconography as well as early written sources from the region in combination with the traditional iconography of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Ayesha Gamiet

Ayesha is also an MA graduate of the Prince's School. Her research is on the relationship between the Divine Names (Attributes) of God and the sacred art and architecture of Islam. Ayesha is interested in exploring how Islamic art and architecture reflects the Divine Attributes. She intends for her theoretical study to inform her practical work, resulting in a body of artwork inspired by the Ninety Nine Beautiful Names.

Nevine Nassar

Nevine is an architect who wishes to look at the experience of space as sacred. Using medieval Islamic architecture as an example of an architecture that reflects the harmony, order and peace inherent in Nature and creates an experiential presence in this world of Divine grace, she hopes to integrate this into her designs for contemporary settings.

Mamdouh Sakr

Mamdouh is the Programme Manager for our educational programme at the Foustat Crafts Centre in Cairo. He will be studying the traditional vernacular architecture of Egypt following on Hassan Fathy's groundbreaking research from the 20th century. Mamdouh intends to broaden the work already done to include other regions, visually documenting what remains of the traditional architecture, and attempting to analyse traditional and modern architecture in relation to the entire range of needs of its human inhabitants.

Idries Trevethan

Idries studied as a PED student for one term at the School. He returns to work on his PhD after spending time studying and working as an art conservator. He found that work in art conservation, while successful in physical analysis of the pieces, was unable to quantify other elements that are obviously present in the works. His research will be based on a 12th century poem by Nizami describing Seven Beauties and will relate this to the symbolism of colour. He will be researching the alchemy of colour and completing pieces in relation to each colour from the poem. In this way he hopes to deepen his own work and perhaps help to open paths for conservators to appreciate other dimensions in their work as well.