A snapshot of 2003
In this year at Warwick:
- Warwick acquired the former headquarters of National Grid, which it converted into
University House. -
Warwick Arts Centre adopted a non-smoking policy – however, it didn’t apply to the Green Room, backstage and the artists’ dressing rooms.
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Warwick signed a Joint Record of Progress with Defra and Horticulture Research International (HRI) which set out the terms of agreement on the proposed merger of HRI Wellesbourne and Kirton with the University. HRI Wellesbourne and Kirton were to form a new department within the Faculty of Science which was to be known as “Warwick HRI”. The proposed transfer date was to be 1st April 2004.
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Professor Margaret Archer of the Department of Sociology presented Pope John Paul II with a copy of Work and Human Fulfillment. In this book members of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences (founded by the Pope in 1994) explored recent changes in the world of work.
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Lord Butterworth died on the 19th of June.
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Summer Degree Congregation: There were eight ceremonies, 3,500 students graduated, and three academic staff received the first Warwick Awards in Teaching Excellence. The awards scheme was set up in 2002 to recognise those whose teaching is considered outstanding by students and staff. Each award winner received £5000 with which to support their teaching and research activities.
For this and other works in the 'Scenes of the Passion' series, Shaw walked within a half-mile radius of his childhood home taking hundreds of photographs. Of these photographs he selected 1 from around every 36 to transform into a painting. Using Humbrol enamel paint usually used for painting model kits, he painstakingly builds up the image layer by layer. The reflective quality of the paint also provides difficulties for Shaw, he often works whilst wearing a balaclava covering his head and nose to stop his own reflection interfering with the production of the image.
The images of the places he frequented as a child together with the use of Humbrol enamel paint evokes childhood memories in Shaw;
'Those places, trees and houses and things I was living with as a kid, they were mute witnesses to my early sentiments.' The familiar scenes the smell of the paint and the colours of his childhood provide works which are filled with nostalgia.
In Shaw's words, 'the sum of the work fills the empty space that you leave behind when you die'.
And in the world:
- Saddam Hussein was captured by US forces.
- The Human Genome Project successfully completed with 99% of the human genome sequenced to 99.99% accuracy.
- Concorde made its last commercial flight, bringing the era of airliner supersonic travel to a close, at least for the time being.
- Apple launches iTunes which became a major success selling 10 million songs within 4 months of launch.
'Scenes of the Passion': The Swing | George Shaw