A warm welcome to HAT's new Development Executive
We’re delighted to announce that David Clampin is joining the team at Raveningham in September. As Development Executive, his role will be to support the marketing effort by engaging with brands, agencies and the world of education. Here’s his story, told in his own words, from which you’ll see why we are so pleased to welcome him.
I was born in Colchester, Essex, where an awakening to the nature of commercial advertising dawned when, in the early 1980s, I encountered Graham Ford’s design for Silk Cut on a 48-sheet billboard. To call this an epiphany would be going too far but it planted a latent interest within me.
Following a regular pattern of schooling, when the time came, I followed my passion by studying for a degree in history, alongside politics and international relations. When that ended, and necessity of finding employment came calling, I fell into a position with Haymarket Publishing selling advertising space in Campaign. Thus, I was thrust into the heart of British advertising and gorged on the extraordinary London scene.
Moves followed to Capital Radio Group, local press, and then direct marketing for a division of BBC Worldwide but, at that point, the lure of history called me back. Intended as a brief interregnum before returning to the world of work, I took an MA in Propaganda, Persuasion and History at the University of Kent which inadvertently led to a PhD.
Whilst studying at Kent, and homing in on my key research focus on the British home front during the Second World War, I could not understand why no academic was questioning and challenging what commercial advertisers were saying in the press through this time. Finding a gap in the scholarship, I embarked on a PhD at Aberystwyth University, published as my first monograph in 2014, Advertising and Propaganda in World War II. Cultural Identity and the Blitz Spirit (I. B. Tauris, London).
On completing my PhD, I had the particularly good fortune to be appointed as senior lecturer in modern British history at Liverpool John Moores University where I have been ever since, the last eight years as Subject Leader – History.
My appointment to HAT has been described by another as a return to my “spiritual home”. The archive has been an important part of my life and work for the past 21-years. Through my teaching and outreach work, it is clear to me that advertising can be read to tell the story of British society and culture. Advertising from the past is so familiar and stimulates memories and recollections. In my new role as Development Executive, I am determined to support the ongoing viability of the collection whilst bringing the joys of what is held at HAT to as many as possible.
HAT's Executive Director, John Gordon-Saker said “David has been a supporter of our work for years and I’m delighted that we could make this move happen. His knowledge of the power of advertising will help us work with agencies and brands to support our primary charitable objective of engaging with education. David’s experience, contacts and communication skills will be instrumental in creating our next Education Summit at which University lecturers will input how we can help them broaden content to their students. Exciting times ahead!”
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