Build your own equipment: Sustaining creative practice at home

Abstract

In March 2020, the United Kingdom Covid-19 response created a huge challenge for the creative sector within higher education. With staff and students in lockdown, facilitating the study of practice-based subjects from home, without access to specialist equipment, became difficult. In response to this challenge, staff at the University of Huddersfield employed an innovative approach; demonstrating how students could build their own equipment at home from basic household items. This paper gives a personal account of this innovative approach to lockdown teaching, which has resulted in a wider re-thinking of our teaching practice. Adaptation to changing circumstances led to the evolution of teaching delivery. We include a rationale for our analogue approach and reflections on how our findings may be applicable to teaching across the creative sector and beyond.