The Prince's School of Traditional Arts

The Prince's Foundation School of Traditional Arts is a school in London which teaches students at the postgraduate degree level, and short open courses and in the community. The school was founded in 2005 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) as part of The Prince's Charities group, with the aim "to continue the living traditions of the world's sacred and traditional art forms".^[1]

The Prince's Foundation School of Traditional Arts

Philosophy

The School is believed to be unique among art schools: although there are many theoretical programmes in western universities at graduate and postgraduate level, there are no colleges apart from the School where the practical skills of the Islamic and traditional arts are taught at this level.^[2][3][4]

The School strives to preserve global traditional arts and traditions under threat of extinction.

Building

Based in the fashionable and artistic area of Shoreditch, an average of 25 students work permanently on site, numbers increasing with students studying PhDs and open courses.

History

The School was originally established as the Visual Islamic and Traditional Arts Programme (VITA) at the Royal College of Art in 1984. It was the brainchild of Keith Critchlow, the Professor Emeritus at the School, who is also the author of several books on Sacred Geometry.^[3]

The Programme transferred to The Prince of Wales' Institute of Architecture in 1993 which subsequently became incorporated into The Prince's Foundation in 2000. The School was initiated as a separate charity of Charles in April 2004.

In 2018, the School became a part of the Prince's Foundation, merging with The Prince's Foundation for Building Community, The Prince's Regeneration Trust, The Great Steward of Scotland's Dumfries House Trust.^[5]

In 2018, works created by The Prince's School and two other charities founded by King Charles were put on display during the Prince & Patron exhibition to mark his 70th birthday.^[6][7]

Postgraduate degrees

Three postgraduate degrees are offered by the school: a Master of Arts (MA), a Master of Philosophy degree (MPhil) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in arts practice research in the traditional arts.^[8] All degrees are awarded by University of Wales Trinity Saint David.^[9]

See also

• Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom
• Islamic geometric patterns
• Multiculturalism in the United Kingdom
• The Prince's Drawing School

References

1. princeofwales.gov.uk
2. Description of ethos and objectives from the Prince's School of Traditional Arts website
3. Annual Review: 2006-2007, Prince's School of Traditional Arts.
4. "Prince Charles says fascinated by M'sia's cultural, racial diversity". Malaysiakini. 3 November 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
5. "About the Prince's Foundation". The Prince's Foundation. Retrieved 24 October 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
6. "Prince & Patron". Royal Collection Trust. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
7. "Prince & Patron exhibition unveiled at Buckingham Palace". The Prince of Wales. 20 July 2018. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
8. "Postgraduate Degrees". The Prince's Foundation School of Traditional Arts. Retrieved 24 October 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
9. "Validation". The Prince's Foundation School of Traditional Arts. Retrieved 24 October 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links

• [1]

Coordinates: 51°31′33″N 0°04′52″W / 51.5258°N 0.0812°W / 51.5258; -0.0812