Welcome from the Principal and Head

At Fine Arts College we always aim to find something exceptional in our students – by giving them the freedom to learn. Most students at Fine Arts come to us looking for a private college environment that will help them to grow academically and creatively. Many have found that other schools’ approaches to learning and school rules are too prescriptive and rigid, which can be counterproductive and stifling for many students.

Students tell us that from the moment they walk through the gates for an interview, they realise they have found the place where they are meant to be. Although Hampstead Fine Arts attracts many types of students, they all wish to study in an energising, open atmosphere, where they make firm friendships that last throughout their lives.

We encourage an atmosphere of mutual respect in which an individual’s talents and ambitions are supported and developed. We see the College as a unique bridge between school and higher education.

Candida Cave
Principal, Fine Arts College

Candida Cave

Position:
Principal, Fine Arts College

Candida Cave trained at the Ruskin School of Art, Oxford University and studied for her M.A. in History of Art at the University of Buckingham. After discovering a gift for inspiring people through teaching, she founded Hampstead Fine Arts College...

Read More

Emmy Schwieters

Position:
Head of Hampstead Fine Arts

Emmy is Head of Hampstead Fine Arts and works alongside the Principal, Candy. Emmy read English and History of Art at Leeds University, joining Fine Arts in 2002. In addition to being Head, Emmy runs the History of Art department...

Read More
"Pupils are highly independent, self-motivated learners, who respond with enthusiasm to the excellent teaching and the stress on individuality."
ISI Inspection, 2020
"The founding ethos “which remains embedded in the school,” says the head, was to create a school the founders themselves would have liked to attend."
Good Schools guide, 2023
Foundation Diploma in Art & Design Accredited by UAL

Why choose our Foundation Course?

  • Accredited by UAL, the top Foundation course provider in the UK
  • In Belsize Park, heart of the British Modernist movement
  • Designated individual workspaces in bright, airy studios
  • Advice on university degree courses in the UK and overseas
  • Portfolio and interview guidance
  • Weekly tutor-led visits to current exhibitions
  • Teaching by practising artists and industry contacts
  • Specialist contextual studios in modern art
  • Close contact with UAL colleges
  • Artist-led study trip to London’s superb museums and galleries.

 

Find out more