Progression AssignmentSinuo Guo

University of Southampton – Winchester School of ArtBA (Hons) Graphic Arts (3 yrs)Intake: 90Average applications per place: 5

Entry Requirements:A-level: BBB, art/design subjectBTEC - DDM

The Graphic Arts programme is structured around four specialist pathways: Graphic Design, Photography, Illustration and Motion Graphics. Connections and collaboration between these pathways is encouraged by allowing students to work alongside each other within shared studio spaces. The course has been developed with leading industry practitioners, with a range of opportunities to engage directly with the creative industries at every stage of the course.

Course Structure:Year 1- Methods and context- Workshops, collaborative projects, lectures - Semester 2 – specialist pathway, ‘boot camp’ - Two modules, examining ideas and theories - Contextual blog and ‘contemporary issues

essay’Year 2- Assignments consolidating existing

knowledge and skills, examining emerging creative methodologies, code based design

- Collabs with students from other pathways- Opportunity to take part in industry project- Optional module

Year 3- Personalise and individual

practice, applying it to professional context

- Industry set projects, competitions, final, personally devised research project

- ‘Insights from the Field’ offers the opportunity to engage with lading agencies and practitioners from the creative industries through a series of lectures and workshops

- 2014/15 – AllofUs, Kin, Moving Brands, Simon Manchipp, Accept & Proceed etc.

Student destinations: Mother, ustwo, Protein, Moving Brands, Johnston Works, the Financial Times, M&C Saatchi, the Daily Telegraph, Elle, Jack Wills, Blueprint, the Guardian, Sony, Harpers Bazaar, the Sunday Times and the Observer. These graduates are working in a diverse range of disciplines which include: advertising, editorial design, web development, animation, motion design, user experience design, typography, photography, branding and marketing.

Selected students from year 3 presented to creative director of Bear, Roberto D’Andria. 3 students were selected at the end for a 6 week work placement

UAL – Central Saint Martins

BA (Hons) Graphic Communication Design (3 yrs)

Entry Requirements:Foundation Diploma in Art and DesignA pass in 1 A level, Passes at GCSE level in 3 other subjects

This course aims to develop your technical and conceptual skills and situate your practice socially ad ethically, so that you emerge with strong technical skills, creative abilities and an understanding of the power of the design to influence and shape human behaviour. The course offers you’re a common introductory diagnostic experience during the first year, followed by two years of selected and more specialised study driven by your interests and preferences. Graphic A

Stage 1- Introduce the landscape and languages of

graphic communication design- Reading, writing, typography and digital –

lectures, workshops and seminars, projects- History of design and theories of

communication- Experience different specialist areas of designStage 2- Chosen specialist area, begin to collaborate

with students across the course and college- Explore hybrid practices, different specialist

areas- Communication skills: verbally, visually, in

writing- Community of practice

Stage 3- Problem finding, problem

solving and problem setting- Depth of knowledge, situating

practice and student-initiated issues and themes

- Communities of practice based around thematic areas

- Tutored by a group of staff - External studies:- Life briefs: LVMH, Camden

council, Sony- Work experience, internships,

study trips, student exchanges

Industry Collaborations:- TetraPak- Karstadt- Sony Music- Beefeater Gin- Fabriano- Kagome- Hewlett Packard- Tod’s- Fresh- Lacoste

Saint Martins Degree show

The Deer Monk - a graphic novel adapted from Chinese legendary stories.

Still-Life’s, created completely by hand, visualising the collaboration of idioms of the Dutch and the English language.

King's Cross Reconstructionan illustration project about kings cross buildings

visual identity for the CSM Degree Show 2016 – winning design

drawn in by the strong contrasting colour palette in pop art works

Zhiwen Tang – Chinese Dream

London College of Communication – Degree show

Art&Design discipline: Graphic DesignGraphic design/visual communication is the practice of visual problem solving using image, typography, space and colour. It is essential in fields such as branding, packaging, advertising and digital design (IU and UX design).

The core value in graphic design is creativity and a good designer knows how to communicate effectively to the target audience of the market/brand, responding creatively to the client’s brief.

There are unlimited ways for the designers to express their ideas: through pencil sketching, composing text with a design programme, experimenting with mixed media, computer coding, visualising data etc. as the products they create are rather diverse.

Some of the most common design softwares used include: Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, After effects, Edge Animate, depending on the nature of the final product and each programme’s suitability.

Famous graphic designers include: David Carson, Milton Glaser, Stefan Sagmeister, Paula Scher, Jacqueline Casey…

PosterThe purpose of this poster is to represent the graphic design field, with its ‘main’ elements or principles under the title. I wanted to keep the design simple and use the simple image with the white frame to hint at editorial design as it is the area I’m most interested in. The main image is quite abstract and creates the effect with its vibrant colours. With this I wanted to portray that graphic design can be quite ‘abstract’ in what it represents as the limits of it are constantly being explored further.

PosterI’ve also created a second poster where I’ve represented the most influential periods in art and design history with one of the graphic pieces from that period. I have arranged it in a dynamic layout and minimalistic colour scheme.

Artist Research: David CarsonDavid Carson (graphic designer, art director) is seen as one of the most influential designers of the last 20 years, with a distinct and experimental graphic style which heavily influenced graphic design in America. He graduated from San Diego State University with honours and distinction at sociology in 1977 and it wasn’t until 1980 that he set out on becoming a graphic designer.

He broke through into the industry with his interest in surfing; working on publications such as Transworld Skateboarding, Beach Culture and How Magazine (all linked in with surfing.) However, his first widely recognised work came out of Ray Gun magazine, earning him the unofficial title ‘Godfather of Grunge’.

At Ray Gun, he experimented with his own style of design, which he could share with a much larger audience. His style often ‘broke the rules’: not complying with the standard practices of typography and abandoning all forms of grid systems, columns, headings etc. His designs were also rarely legible which provokes the audience’s eye to study his work in greater detail and take in the work.

David is featured in both “The History of Graphic Design” by Philip Meggs, as well as “The Encyclopaedia of Surfing” by Matt Warsaw. He designed a special issue of Surfing Magazine titled “Explorations” which came out in July of ’04. He also recently directed a television commercial for the progressive UMPQUA Bank in Seattle, Washington. David’s work continues to be subjective and largely driven by intuition, with an emphasis on reading material before designing it, and experimenting with ways to communicate in a variety of mediums.

“Do what you love, trust your gut, your instincts, and intuition”

mixed messages from beach culture magazine

- Title interpreted from the article - visual representation of the title

combination of different fonts- Title printed out on 4 pages, laid out

and cut, then taped together- Experimental- Illegible – breaking the rules - Dark colour scheme, grunge image- No grid system, title across the article- Effective visual communication

David Carson – Analysis

Artist Research: Siang ChingSiang Ching is a Singaporean Graphic Designer/Illustrator with a main focus on graphic design, illustration and print design. She graduated with a first class honours BA in Design Communication from Lasalle College of the Arts in 2008.She regularly uses digital softwares for her designs but also has great appreciation for hand-made works, often using traditional techniques: print-making, crafts, origami.

Siang Ching also finds joy in patterns, hence she created pattern-matters.com which is a graphics project inquiring on possible ways to augment the role of pattern by looking into the design process and tactile exploration through pattern making.

Siang Ching analysis: Patterns matter

Through this project, Siang Ching wanted to inspire designers to look at pattern from every possible angle. It also aims to demonstrate that pattern is a crucial form of design element in graphic design and not merely a decorating tool.

This main piece represents the ‘Frequency of blood groups in Singapore Donor Population – a tangible paper infographic. The main image was made by cutting card and forming the prism like shapes, filling out the ‘blood drop’ image.

This gives a third dimension to the image, with different tones of red/pink, making it more visually intriguing with the changing colours and shapes. The background has subtle triangular pattern over it, contradicting the ‘textured’ image. The colour scheme connotes with blood, effectively using visual communication.

Artists Comparison There’s clear contrast in Siang Ching’s and David Carson’s graphic works ： Siang Ching’s editorials and posters designs are mostly clean and have a sophisticated feel to it. She usually uses a main image illustration to visually communicate the idea and combines it with simple, minimalistic typefaces.

Whereas David Carson breaks the rules of graphic design, as his design sometimes appears illegible or dirty, with a very busy layout and no grid system unlike Siang Ching. His work looks experimental and reckless but it is its unexpectedness that draws the audience in to a closer look. Despite them having completely different design styles, they both communicate visually very effectively, proving that there’s not only one way to visual communication.

Other ways to get into Graphic design There are alternative ways to get into the graphic design industry without having to get a BA degree.

1. Shillington Has recently arrived in UK and US – the Australian “design college with a difference”. It offers a full time course lasting 3 months or a part-time course lasting one year. It’s an intensive graphic design course preparing the students for a career in the industry with design skills and a high quality portfolio. The students’ works seem pretty decent and professional. There are mixed reviews of the college as some people feel that it is impossible to ‘learn’ design in 3months period, while some argue that one can easily gain a complete conceptual understanding of design in 3 months. It is ideal for people who already love design and would like to make it more than their hobby. Most students are aged 25-40 and many of them are graduates with degree that’s not related to art & design, therefore this intensive, short course can act as a ‘shortcut’ for them to the industry. They would most likely not be accepted on a MA degree since most courses require BA in creative subject.

Other ways to get into Graphic design

2. Work experience/apprenticeship/internshipsIt is possible to get into the industry through work experience and apprenticeships. Many Junior designers start out by joining design organisations, volunteering for events and charity works to get their work out there. All of this would help start a network base, add work into the portfolio and help you get noticed.

An internship with a good design agency/studio can offer invaluable experience and start your design career. You’ll have a better understanding of how design agencies are run; client requests and briefings. Often, these internships can lead to a full-time position offer at the agency.

3. Submit work to competitionsThis helps building a reputation and getting under noticed by art directors/editors.

In conclusion, graphic design is one of the most competitive fields in the creative industry. The employers always look for designers with experience and an impressive portfolio. This is why most people opt for the creative degree route as it gives them confidence in your ability.

Alternative progression routes:There’s far more career paths to go into after graduating with a graphic design degree, not just freelancing or designer in an agency:

Advertising Art DirectorThey are responsible for what the advertisements look like. They are involved in creating a campaign that has an instant, positive Impact on the consumer in order to promote the product or brand being advertised. Art director’s responsibilities include:

- working closely with the copywriter, generate creative ideas - producing sketches or 'storyboards' - gaining an understanding of the target audience - pitching ideas to clients;- briefing other members of the creative team;- commissioning photographers, artists or film-makers - visiting and assessing locations - working on location;- attending meetings at production houses and with other directors;- advising new creatives

Most of the art directors have a degree in one of the following subjects: Advertising and marketing graphic design, advertising design, illustration, fine art, graphic design.

Alternative progression routes:IllustratorAn Illustrator produces drawings, paintings or diagrams that help make products more attractive or easier to understand, It could include books, book jacket, greeting cards, advertisements, packaging and detailed technical diagrams. Many professional illustrators have a degree in illustration or other art related degree subjects.

The work would typically include: - Discussing requirements or briefs with authors, editors or designers- Negotiating prices and time scales- Deciding on the right style for illustrations- Creating illustrations using hand drawing, painting or computer design packages- Speaking with the client and changing designs if necessary- Making sure the work is completed within set budgets and deadlines

Some illustrators also specialise in one type of illustration such as heritage illustration, designing pictures for guidebooks, fashion illustrations etc. Many of them also work freelance as self-employed illustrators, therefore business skills are also crucial.

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