Today, we meet Anna Votsi, Senior Research Funding Specialist, and discuss all things creative.
What do you enjoy most about your role?
I like hearing different people’s ideas and I also really enjoy the mix of creative and methodical work I do. For example I get involved in shaping up projects and developing events and initiatives, but I also love working with numbers, lists and data.
What led you to work at the University?
It was just luck! I was looking to move away from London and this job came up. I used to have this idea when I was a student that working in a university somehow contributes to a greater good; it doesn’t always feel like that but it’s still a great community to work in.
Take a photo of an object which represents something important to you. Tell us a bit about it, please.
I get very attached to objects so it’s impossible to pick one, but if I had to it would be my laptop, embarrassingly, because it holds representations of a lot of things I love, including other objects. The music I listen to every day, and photos from all the places I’ve lived in or visited, and of the buildings I like, and films and shows that have kept me company at different points in my life, and emails with my friends, and so on. I will spare you a photo of it though.
Proudest moment at work?
I’m proud of every little moment I have connected and worked with other people, with each of us bringing in their own small piece to make something larger happen.
What do you like doing when you are not being a Research Support Adviser?
I like making my own clothes, and as with my job I enjoy the variety in it. There is a lot of maths and engineering and technical knowledge but of course it’s also creative because you’re designing and creating something from scratch. There is always something new to learn and I also like the theory and conversation around it, for example about sustainability and ethical production, or the history of clothes and fashion, or the return of handmaking and mending.
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