Announcing RCA2026: Festival Of Communication

The Royal College of Art (RCA), the world’s leading art and design university, presents RCA2026: The Festival of Communication.

Open on selected dates between 3-12 July, The Festival of Communication showcases the creative work of graduating students from the RCA’s School of Communication. Hosted at the RCA White City campus and the surrounding area, the festival features exhibitions and events from the MA programmes in Digital Direction, Visual Communication, Animation, and Information Experience Design, as well as the Communication MFA.

The Festival of Communication Part 1, from 3-5 July, will showcase work from the Digital Direction MA and Visual Communication MA programmes. Examples of student work include:

Akwetey Orraca-Tetteh, "AK," (MA Digital Direction) is a Ghanaian American conceptual artist who uses painting, 3D engineering, film, and audiovisual performance to explore the mythology of the history of the future and the complexities of digital life. ‘Window Tripper’ is a narrative short film decentered around a contemporary African and American anti-hero, who, while recovering from an eye injury with the help of his mentor, an AI application, and an accidental dose of hallucinogens, transforms a story of loss into a journey of symbolic reclamation.

Yewon Jang (MA Visual Communication) interrogates the potential and limitations of computational tools, viewing digital glitches as generative forces. Inspired by Dol-jabi, a Korean first-birthday tradition in which a child’s future is hinted at through the selection of symbolic objects, the animation ‘What Could You Be?’ explores lives we could have lived and possibilities lost through our choices, and how society stages possibilities through the form of free choice while shaping ideals of success.

The Festival of Communication Part 2, from 10-12 July, will showcase work from the Animation MA, Information Experience Design MA, and Communication MFA programmes. Examples of student work include:

Belgian director, screenwriter, and art director Rune Callewaert (MA Animation) explores relational tensions between characters in evocative worlds, handcrafting his own sets and puppets to blend a baroque, macabre aesthetic with subtle humour. Based on a family anecdote, 'Her Worm' centers on a 1970s love triangle between a housewife, her general practitioner husband, and her own preserved tapeworm which her husband keeps in a jar of formaldehyde after treating her.

Pranav Babu (MA Information Experience Design) examines how emerging technologies shape human decision-making and everyday life. ‘Celebrating Autonomy’ is an interactive speculative installation that invites participants into a fictional world where personal choices and emotions are constantly assessed. Inspired by surveillance capitalism and social credit systems, the project uses play, humour, and immersive storytelling to encourage audiences to question how much agency they have in increasingly data-driven societies.

Operating under ‘Studio SwitchOff,’ communication practitioner and experience designer Mandy Chang (MFA Communication) creates installations, workshops, and immersive experiences that invite active participation, encouraging audiences to engage with ambiguity and construct their own interpretations. The participatory project ‘It's About Switch Off’ invites individuals on a self-guided garden treasure hunt, offering a quiet escape from everyday noise that encourages them to slow down and reflect on what truly matters amidst the constant influx of information.

A selection of student works will also be featured in a Big Screen Showcase on 14 July (5.30–8.00pm) at the iconic Television Centre in White City.