Christopher Sharrock has been named the dean of the University of the Arts’ new College of Art, Media and Design. Sharrock is a noted illustrator and was most recently the dean of Camberwell College of Arts, a constituent college of the University of the Arts London (not affiliated with Philadelphia’s University of the Arts). He will join the University of the Arts in Philadelphia on July 1, 2011.The College of Art, Media and Design will launch in September 2011, as the university merges its College of Art and Design with its College of Media and Communication.
Sharrock’s career has ranged from work on the groundbreaking British television series Spitting Image to academic and leadership positions at Central St. Martins, the University of Brighton, and Hereford College of Arts. At the University of the Arts London he helped to develop a “Three College Model,” leading the effort to restructure and promote the specialized strengths of the constituent colleges— Camberwell College of Arts, the Wimbledon School of Art, and Chelsea College of Art and Design.
“We are very pleased that Christopher is joining the University of the Arts at this important juncture in the institution’s history,” said President Sean Buffington. “His leadership and vision will help us continue to implement our new academic plan, developing innovative new ways to educate artists and designers to be leaders in a world where the need for creative thinkers has never been greater.”
Sharrock has been published in Direction magazine, Creative Review and Design magazine on subjects including advertising, illustration, design and art, and he has curated a number of illustration exhibitions.