Professor Michael Tucker was honoured in 2012 as a Knight: First Class in recognition for his 'outstanding service in the interest of Norway.' His career at the Faculty of Arts included the curation of exhibitions at the Gallery for over thirty years and publications on shamanism, Norwegian culture, jazz and, notably, the work of Sir Alan Davie.
Professor Michael Tucker curated and taught at the College of Arts and Humanities from the mid-1980s, before retiring in 2012. That year he was also honoured by the Royal Norwegian Government and His Majesty King Harald of Norway who bestowed him with the honour of Knight: First Class in recognition for his 'outstanding service in the interest of Norway.' This came from many years supporting the arts that emerged from the country including its jazz drumming tradition.
Professor Tucker's academic background was in the cross-disciplinary history of ideas, with an emphasis on 19th and 20th century studies. He developed several unique undergraduate elements of study at Brighton, including multi-media courses in Primitivism; Scandinavian Studies c1850 - Now; Jazz Studies; Image, Music, Meaning and Nada Brahma: The World Is Sound. His interests also focussed on the idea of shamanism as a means of revisioning the critical import and creative potentiality of the arts.
Tucker curated extensively and published widely in the fields of visual art, music and poetry. He was invited to lecture at many universities and major arts institutions e.g. Oxford, Cambridge, London, Leeds, St Andrews, Manchester, Dundee; Royal Academy of Arts, Tate St Ives, Schumacher College, Berlinische Galerie, Oslo Kunstakademi and in 1998 he was awarded the (examined) Degree of Doctor of Letters by the University of Sussex, for ‘distinguished contributions to the advancement of learning’.
Professor Tucker's exhibitions and curatorship for the University of Brighton Gallery included:
Essays by Prof Michael Tucker can be found in Alan Davie's Drawings, Brendan Neiland's New Paintings and On Reflection, Harvey Daniels' 10 Years, Paul Benjamins' Light Years and Ian McKeever's In Praise of Painting, all available from the College of Arts and Humanities online shop.
