New Blades 2024: AUB Modelmaking students steal show with 14 award wins

BA (Hons) Modelmaking students from Arts University Bournemouth (AUB) stole the show at this year’s New Blades show in London winning 14 awards out of 21. The annual modelmaking recruitment exposition is the single most important event of the year for budding modelmakers, providing a space for recruiters to meet new and emerging talent.

Organised by 4Dmodelshop and sponsored by a host of industry employers including Foster + Partners, Amalgam, M.A.D Models, Merlin Magic Making, Atom, and others, this year was the 30^th annual show at Holborn Studios in London. Hundreds of industry guests visited to see the work of this year’s graduating modelmakers from six universities across the UK.

“It was an incredible night for our modelmaking students," says Dr David Lund, Senior Lecturer for BA (Hons) Modelmaking at AUB. "With an international reputation, our students do have an advantage, but we still weren’t expecting to win quite so many!

“It’s great to see the industry thriving; it’s a really unique profession that works across the creative industries. And there’s a real boom for modelmaking as they’re increasingly used in TV and film, as well as being vital for architects, for educational and medical purposes, and in the toy and gaming worlds.”

Katrine Linderoth was one of the night’s big winners, coming away with the Leviathan Workshop Award, Fixie's Best Use of 3D Printing Award, and the Best Use of Creative Materials, which is sponsored by 4Dmodelshop.

Katrine comments, “This was such a big event for us all. It was so good – and a little bit overwhelming – to meet so many people from industry. I had so many people coming up to my booth who were genuinely impressed and interested in my models. It meant a lot to have people from industry recognise my efforts and it was incredible to win three awards, I couldn’t believe it!”

David adds, “This introduction to industry is so important for our students to get an idea of where they’d like to go once they’ve graduated. It’s a great degree to have for employability; it’s a discipline that’s rapidly gaining in popularity but still enjoys an enviable ratio of graduates to employment opportunities.

"There’s actually more jobs than there are students, and many of our students have already got jobs even though they’ve not graduated yet, which is testament to their high calibre, now reinforced by the successes at New Blades.”