Want to find the next big thing? Here’s a directory for the new generation of creative talent

What do Alexander McQueen, Anish Kapoor and Amelia Dimoldenberg all have in common? Aside from names beginning with the letter A, all three graduated from University of the Arts London (UAL). Comprising six colleges across the capital, UAL is one of the most prestigious art institutions in the world. Take a glance over the nominees of any of the UK’s most revered awards, and you’ll find UAL alumni. This includes ​​Nadine Ijewere – the first Black woman to shoot a Vogue cover in the magazine’s entire 129 year history – and sculptor Thomas J Price, who was commissioned to create the Windrush memorial for Hackney Town Hall.

It’s clear that these graduates are worth keeping an eye on, and it’s never been easier to do so. UAL Showcase is a platform set up during the Covid-19 pandemic, initially as a solution to cancelled graduate shows. Showcase was intended to be temporary, but what felt like a compromise to many quickly proved its benefits. “For the first time, you could browse student work across all of the colleges and courses – at any time you liked,” says Stephanie Feather, head of creative at UAL and a graduate of Central Saint Martins. “The platform helped share more students’ work with larger audiences than ever before.” What’s also unique about Showcase is that students can show work up to a year after graduating, so audiences can expect to discover new projects all year round.

For its first edition, the university enlisted Pentagram to develop the design system for Showcase’s visual identity. The following year, an in-house team led by UAL graduates took over, rebranding Showcase into the sleek platform we see today. Over the course of four years, Showcase has established itself as a go-to source for inspiration and scouting talent. Crucially, as UAL graduates themselves, the team were able to apply their own firsthand experience of what it’s like to be a student, and the myriad challenges of diving into the professional world for the first time. “I found it useful to connect in the virtual world, especially as I was moving into job searching,” says Daniela Di Martino, a recent graduate from UAL’s London College of Communication and Showcase’s senior designer.

With each year, the product team improves on the platform’s design and functionality. For example, Nana Darfoor, UAL’s user interface designer and a graduate from UAL Creative Computing Institute, recently introduced a badging system. This marks students’ industry achievements – an easy way for employers to spot those with existing accolades.

On top of year-round access and global reach, Showcase stands out because of its bespoke search function and curated collections. Viewers have the ability to filter by college or subject, easily navigating between artist pages, where each student is given a profile to show their final collection and write about their process. Plus, thematically-linked bodies of work are shown together, selected by UAL’s editorial team, or industry partners like Thames & Hudson, Sadler’s Wells, or Black Girl Fest. These collections offer further opportunity to discover new talent.

UAL’s head of online showcasing, Vicky Creevey says: “We will continue to make it easier to connect with creatives; supporting industry professionals to find people with the skills they’re after, and helping new graduates to find work and other opportunities. Due to the unrivalled breadth of creative courses UAL offers, there’s always something incredible to discover.”

Do you want to find the next McQueen, Kapoor or Dimoldenberg? UAL Showcase may well be the best place to start.