Alumni Holly Reed, Phoebe Aucamp and Charlotte Miles, who all graduated from Loughborough in 2024, featured in The Big Deal with Steph McGovern, a series which gives creatives and entrepreneurs the opportunity to present their work to a panel of expert buyers.
The programme delves into the exclusive world of art buying and selling and challenges would-be dealers to compete against each other in the ambitious world of contemporary art. The graduates were selected after responding to a university call-out inviting recent Fine Art alumni to take part in filming for an episode that saw the aspiring art dealers handle graduate art. Fourteen artists from universities and prestigious art schools around the UK were featured and had their works sold at auction.
Charlotte graduated from Loughborough with a First-Class degree in Fine Art and is now studying for an MA in Sculpture at the Royal College of Art in London. Her work uses humour, storytelling and surreal imagery to explore themes of loneliness, mortality and the human experience, often combining references from history and fiction. She currently creates painted wooden wall sculptures and immersive installations designed to spark curiosity and challenge perceptions of reality.
Phoebe, who graduated with First-Class Honours in Fine Art from Loughborough University, weaves personal narratives into her art. Drawing from psychogeographic exploration and interconnected stories of urban experience, Phoebe incorporates mixed-media techniques to convey the sensory richness of the cityscape, emphasizing sights, sounds and textures.
Holly, who graduated with a First-Class degree in Fine Art at both the University of Michigan and Loughborough University, creates work that explores colour, texture and form, often drawing inspiration from the natural world. Her practice spans ceramics and printmaking, with a particular interest in how people experience objects through both sight and touch. Holly’s octopus print, ‘Creature of the Deep’, which was commissioned through the programme, generated significant interest and featured in the final episode.
Holly, speaking about her appearance on the programme, said:
“The University's support in arranging access to the print facilities made a huge difference. It allowed me to create the commissioned piece in time and take full advantage of an incredible opportunity that came through the programme… It's been really exciting to showcase my work to a national audience and to represent Loughborough on such a big platform.”
The Big Deal with Steph McGovern is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.