2012 Awardee: Philip Sharp

Whilst on the course I will be aiming to perform as much as possible, in order to build on experience and attempt to make a name for myself.

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 18
ARTFORMS: ,
WEBSITE:https://www.philipsharp.co.uk/
 
 

Biography

Growing up in Glasgow, Philip demonstrated an exceptional talent as a virtuoso pianist.  By the age of 18 he had already mastered an impressive repertoire, including the third concertos of Rachmaninov and Prokofiev, which he successfully performed in a number of concerts.

Philip went on to study at the Chetham’s College of music.  His talent and academic abilities earned him a place on the prestigious and demanding ‘joint course’ at Manchester University and the Royal Northern College of Music.  With his ambitions set on building a career as a solo performer, the course provided an excellent platform from which he could develop his true potential.

How the Award Helped

Philip’s Dewar Award supported him in accepting his place on the ‘joint course’ at Manchester University and the RNCM.

Since the Award

Update 2020: Philip graduated in 2018 and has gone on to become a Junior Fellow at the Royal Northern College of Music

Philip Sharp performing in 2018

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Whilst on the course I will be aiming to perform as much as possible, in order to build on experience and attempt to make a name for myself.

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2012 Awardee: Mark Taylor

"I am forever in debt to the Dewar Arts Awards. You do an incredible job for young people like me and I hope one day I can help you make the difference to other young people’s lives. Thank you."

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 19
ARTFORMS: ,
 
 
 

Biography

Mark is an especially talented flute player who is utterly devoted to music.  Demonstrating a flair for performance that is instinctive and natural. Mark has a very advanced level of technique for his age.  He plays expressively, with an intensity and sensitivity that captivates his audiences.

Having grown up in Lanarkshire, Mark studied at the Douglas Academy Music School and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.  During his time at the RCS he won the Gilbert Inness Woodwind Competition, performed as a soloist with the West of Scotland Concert Band, and was overall winner at the Glasgow Music Festival two years in a row.

Since then, Mark went on to gain a scholarship to study at the prestigious Guildhall School of Music in London.  He proved himself to be a student with exceptional potential, standing out as a leading talent in a highly competitive environment.

Mark is highly self-motivated and driven, showing a dedication to his studies and real commitment to his instrument.  He is an intelligent, creative and charismatic individual with a great future ahead of him.

How the Award Helped

Whilst at the Guildhall School of Music, a change in Mark’s financial circumstances threatened his ability to continue his studies.  Receiving a Dewar Award helped him to carry on with his course and fulfil his potential.

Since the Award

Mark successfully completed his studies at the Guildhall, receiving exceptional praise for his talent and dedication. In his final report, he told us:

“It is very difficult for me to put into words how thankful I am to have had the support behind me during these four years. When I think of all the times where I thought it was the end of the road I don’t know how I got through it. When I look at my degree it will not only be my great diploma, it will be a reminder for me to stay strong and keep going in times of real struggle. I will look at it in years to come and I will never forget the generous support from my donors and charities that helped me survive and gave me the equipment to make my dreams real.

I hope from what I have written you will see the impact your support has made on my studies and even more importantly my life. I am forever in debt to the Dewar Arts Awards. You do an incredible job for young people like me and I hope one day I can help you make the difference to other young people’s lives. Thank you.”

Additional Award (2015)

After studying in Cologne as an Erasmus student, Mark was offered the exceptional opportunity to undertake a postgraduate course at the Hochshule fur Musik und Tanz, under the tutelage of Robert Winn. Mark received a further award to enable him to continue his studies to masters level in one of Europe’s finest woodwind departments.

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"I am forever in debt to the Dewar Arts Awards. You do an incredible job for young people like me and I hope one day I can help you make the difference to other young people’s lives. Thank you."

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2012 Awardee: Sarah Park

Receiving this generous support has enabled me to pursue my ambition of becoming a performing pianist. I hope that I might be a fitting ambassador for the Awards.

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 18
ARTFORMS: ,
 
 
 

Biography

Edinburgh-born with South Korean heritage, Sarah gained a scholarship to study at the prestigious St Mary’s Music School in 2005. During her time there she distinguished herself as a solo pianist and as a chamber musician.  With her first concerto experience aged 14,  she has since performed in venues across the UK.

Sarah’s talent has earned her numerous prestigious awards, including the James Waterhouse Trophy and the Elizabeth Ritchie Medal.  In 2008 she was a finalist at the Edinburgh Competition Festival, where her performance at the Pianothon was broadcast on BBC Radio 3.  She has also taken part in numerous masterclasses, where she has worked with distinguished musicians to develop her skills.

Sarah has performed as a soloist and as part of a trio.  In the summer of 2011, she was one of the few selected from St Mary’s to tour a series of concerts around the Highlands.  She enjoys taking every opportunity to communicate her interpretations of music with an audience, and her ambition is to become a professional performing artist.

How the Award Helped

In 2012, Sarah was offered a place to study on the four-year BMus(Hons) course at the Royal College of Music, London.  Her Dewar Award enable her to accept this opportunity and pursue her ambitions.

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Receiving this generous support has enabled me to pursue my ambition of becoming a performing pianist. I hope that I might be a fitting ambassador for the Awards.

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2012 Awardee: Lliam Paterson

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD:
ARTFORMS: ,
 
 
 

Biography

Originally from Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Lliam showed an immense aptitude for the piano from a young age.

As an undergraduate, Lliam gained a coveted place to study at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge. He proved himself to be an active and dynamic musician in a variety of roles including composer, conductor, recitalist and accompanist. His dedication paid off, and he achieved the outstanding result of a first class honours.

After graduation, Lliam was accepted onto a masters degree in piano accompaniment at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.  This flexible programme offered the opportunity to pursue courses in areas such as composition, conducting and harpsichord.  Lliam received an offer to study composition at New College, Oxford as well Advanced Composition at the Darlington International Summer School.  He was also selected as a repetiteur for the British Youth Opera for the second year in a row.

Lliam shows immense talent and considerable promise for the future.

How the Award Helped

Lliam’s award enabled him to accept his place on the Guildhall Artist Masters in Piano Accompaniment.

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2012 Awardee: Steven Ferguson

I have the chance of a lifetime to study on the National Film and Television School's MA Cinematography. From my teenage years I have dreamed of studying at the course and through a lot of hard work I have reached the point where I have been offered a place!

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 24
ARTFORMS: , ,
WEBSITE:http://vimeo.com/stevencferguson
 
 

Biography

Growing up in Cumbernauld, Steven was encouraged from an early age to follow his dreams.  He was instilled with a great sense of ambition and a belief that with hard work and passion you can achieve anything, whatever your background.  Steven’s passion turned out to be film, and he set out to carve himself a career in cinematography.

Supported by a student bursary, Steven completed a BA(Hons) in Digital Film and Television at what was then the RSAMD (now the RCS).  His graduation film, Ghost Story (see below), was screened at the Glasgow Film Festival and received much attention, being nominated for a Royal Television Society Scotland Award and winning ‘Best Fiction’ at the Creative Loop Awards. Steven graduated with a first class degree and has returned to the RCS frequently to support other students as a mentor.  He has also worked freelance as a lighting camera operator.

Steven shows immense capacity for cinematography, making work that is both visually beautiful and thematically sophisticated.  He is an imaginative storyteller who communicates with unique vision, and has been hailed as “a real Scottish talent with unlimited potential”.

As well as honing his craft in film, Steven intends to continue sharing skills and knowledge with up and coming talent.  He says: “I have seen first hand how being taught and passed on knowledge by others with passion for their craft can have a transformative effect – it is through the inspiration and encouragement from my tutors/lecturers that has led to many of my successes so far and put me on the right path.”

How the Award Helped

Steven had always dreamed of studying at the National Film and Television School, and in 2011 he was offered a coveted place on the MA in Cinematography. This presented a fantastic opportunity for Steven to develop his technique in areas such as lighting, composition and writing, and would take him to the next stage of his burgeoning career. The Dewar Arts Awards supported him in taking up the two year course in London.

Since the Award

Steven went from strength to strength at the NFTS. His graduation film earned him a BAFTA Scotland 2015 New Talent Award nomination for Camera/Photography. Entitled Sick, the film tells the story of a lonely, isolated mother (see trailer below).

May 2014 – Article in Variety: Film North nominated for a Student Oscar

April 2015 – BAFTA Scotland New Talent Award Winner 2015: Steven wins Camera/Photography Award and Best New Talent Award for film Sick

Steven’s graduate film Ghost Story from RCS on Vimeo.

Double win at BAFTA Scotland New Talent Awards 2015

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I have the chance of a lifetime to study on the National Film and Television School's MA Cinematography. From my teenage years I have dreamed of studying at the course and through a lot of hard work I have reached the point where I have been offered a place!

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2012 Awardee: Kyle Spires

This award has quite literally been life changing, enabling me to push my visions and challenge myself at this critical time.

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 24
ARTFORMS: , ,
 
 
 

Biography

Kyle is a gifted fashion designer, originally from Greenock.  As an undergraduate he studied at the Edinburgh College of Art, where he learned about fashion, design, construction and illustration.  At the age of 22, he moved to London to take up a place on the RCA’s MA in Womenswear.

Whilst studying in London, Kyle proved himself to be a throughly committed and self-motivated individual, whose work is creative, highly relevant and underpinned with a strong technical awareness.  His aesthetic has been described as both polished and personal, and in 2011 he won the prestigious Karen Millen Portfolio Award at Graduate Fashion Week. He is an ambitious and innovative, a natural communicator, and has a bright future ahead of him.

How the Award Helped

The process of developing a final collection can be extremely costly.  Kyle’s Dewar Award supported him in this crucial stage of his studies, allowing him the freedom to test out new techniques and explore his full potential for innovation.

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This award has quite literally been life changing, enabling me to push my visions and challenge myself at this critical time.

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2012 Awardee: Jessica Ashman

It excites me to be part of an industry which makes the impossible possible, and reaches out to the hearts and minds of audiences from all walks of life

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 26
ARTFORMS: , ,
WEBSITE:https://www.jessla.co.uk/
 
 

Biography

Jessica moved to Edinburgh from the Midlands in 2008, after gaining a coveted place on the Animator Apprenticeship Scheme run by what was then Scottish Screen. She proved herself to be a commited and passionate young animator, with the necessary patience and core skills required to make a career in the artform.

After her apprenticeship, Jessica lived and worked in Glasgow.  She made a name for herself as a freelance director and animator in the film and TV industries.

Jessica’s passion for directing comes from the ability to share stories, experiences and emotions through work on screen.  Her short film Fixing Luka is a stop motion animaton that explores her personal experience of growing up with a younger brother who has autism.  The film went on to win a New Talent BAFTA for Original Score and a Scottish BAFTA for Best Animation in 2011.

Also in 2011, Jessica was commissioned as a writer/director on B3 Media’s Talentlab Programme;  a creative development programme produced in partnership with Skillset and BBC Films.  She received mentor support from top industry professionals and on completion was accepted onto the prestigious MA in Animation at the Royal College of Art.

How the Award Helped

Studying for a masters degree provided a crucial tipping point for Jessica, taking her to the next level of her career.  She received a Dewar Award to enable her to benefit from this opportunity to the full.

Trailer: Fixing Luka

Trailer: Tenderfoot (MA final year film from RCA) 

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It excites me to be part of an industry which makes the impossible possible, and reaches out to the hearts and minds of audiences from all walks of life

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2012 Awardee: Gillian Park

Completing my Masters degree at the National Film and Television School is my number one priority

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 23
ARTFORMS: , , ,
WEBSITE:https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6353522/
 
 

Biography

Gillian Park is a young screenwriter of exceptional talent and great promise.  She is a natural storyteller with a flair for comedy and a powerful, original voice.  Her work reflects her Scottish background with a warmth, vigour and authenticity, but she is equally able to push outside the confines of her own experience to explore different genres and areas of writing.

Born in Irvine, Gillian left school at 17 to do a HNC in TV Production at Glasgow Metropolitan College.  Whilst there she discovered a passion for writing, and after finishing her course she was accepted on a course of study at the RSAMD (now the RCS).  The short film she wrote and directed there was screened internationally at a number of festivals and went on to win several awards.  She graduated from her degree with first class honours.

After graduating, Gillian began working with a variety of production companies, but her dream was to study screenwriting at the National Film and Television School.  In 2012 she applied with a script set in Scotland and was successful, gaining an outstanding opportunity to hone her craft.  The fees and living costs in London proved challenging, however, and Gillian was awarded a Dewar Arts Award to support her in completing her MA and making the most of the opportunity she had strived for.

Agent: http://www.casarotto.co.uk/client/gillian-park–18650

How the Award Helped

Gillian received a Dewar Arts Award to enable her to complete her masters degree at the National Film and Television School, London.

Since the Award

March 2015 – Nominated for a BAFTA Scotland New Talent Award: Writer, Flotsam

Trailer: The Last Resort written by Gillian Park (c) NFTS 2014

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Completing my Masters degree at the National Film and Television School is my number one priority

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2012 Awardee: Heather Ross

There has been a great deal of progression within my work. From my critical and contextual awareness of the concepts and underlying theories, to a greater engagement with materials; I have established a practice that is continually evolving.

YEAR OF AWARD: 2012
AGE AT AWARD: 29
ARTFORMS: ,
 
 
 

Biography

In 2005, Heather Ross graduated from Gray’s School of Art as an outstanding painter with a first class honour degree.  Her talent was recognised by the school and she was offered the opportunity to lecture there part time.

Heather is curious and ambitious, and has won numerous distinctions, awards and scholarships to exhibit and travel. She is driven to pursue her passion, and in 2012 gained a place on a prestigious masters course at Chelsea College of Art.

How the Award Helped

Heather’s Dewar Award supported her in accepting her place to study at the Chelsea College of Art.

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There has been a great deal of progression within my work. From my critical and contextual awareness of the concepts and underlying theories, to a greater engagement with materials; I have established a practice that is continually evolving.

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2011 Awardee: Calum Huggan

I would like to thank you for the generous contribution the Dewar Arts Awards have made to support my further studies.

YEAR OF AWARD: 2011
AGE AT AWARD: 21
ARTFORMS: ,
WEBSITE:https://www.calumhuggan.com/
EMAIL:calum_huggan@hotmail.com
TWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/calumhuggan

Biography

Raised in Lenzie, Calum began studying music at the RSAMD Junior Academy where he was noticed as someone of talent and innate musicality. He went on to study marimba and percussion at RSAMD from where he graduated with a first-class degree.

During his undergraduate years, he won the Governor’s percussion competition in his second year which resulted in recording a solo in the BBC’s “Classics Unwrapped” series. He also spent a year as guest student at the Mannheim Musikhochschule studying solo and chamber music under the direction of Jasmin Kohlberg and Dennis Kuhn.

Calum regularly participates in international competitions and was the only percussionist to reach the semi-finals of the 2011 Royal Overseas League Competition.

Calum was accepted onto the MMus in solo and chamber music course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (formerly RSAMD). He is aiming to build a solo career as a marimbist/percussionist.

How the Award Helped

The Dewar Arts Award supported Calum in studying his masters course in solo and chamber music.

Since the Award

2012

Calum’s passion and commitment has allowed him to perform solo debuts within the major concert houses across the United Kingdom and Germany. He has performed with orchestras such as BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Ensemble, Scottish Opera and Mannheim National Theatre.  He has recently made his international debut as guest principal with Jyvaskyla Sinfonietta in Finland and has performed for Royalty with Flercussion in Abu Dhabi.

As well as being a first class performer, Calum’s passion lies in cross-arts collaborations and teaching.  He is now an active and sought after percussion tutor and workshop leader throughout the UK, a musical and artistic director for several of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s Summer Schools and is an accompanist for contemporary dance and theatre.

Reviews:

Glasgow Concert Hall Concert, Guardian Review July 2012
Edinburgh Queen’s Hall Concert, Times Review June 2012
Glasgow Concert Hall Concert, Guardian Review February 2012
Edinburgh Queen’s Hall Concert, Times Review February 2012

2021

In 2020, Calum signed to award-winning record label, Delphian.  He released his debut album in 2021 – American Music for Marimba.

Calum Huggan talks about studying at the RSAMD

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I would like to thank you for the generous contribution the Dewar Arts Awards have made to support my further studies.

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