GrD4950– Graphic Design Portfolio-CTW
Stan Anderson, Coordinator
+ Associate Professor
CRN #11701
Monday/Wednesday 2:30-5:20p
Office: 362
468 Studio
Office
Hours: Tuesday 11-4p (or appts.)
3 Credit Hours
Office
Phone: 404-543-4086 cell
stananderson@gsu.edu
www.seniorportfolio2015.blogspot.com
______________________________________________________________________________________
Stan Anderson schedule for Spring 2015:
Monday & Wednesday
11-1:50p
- GrD Pop Culture (Juniors) – 460 Studio
2:30-5:20p - GrD4950 - Portfolio
(Seniors) – 468 Studio
5:30-8:20p – GrD3200 – Intermediate
Design (Sophomores) – 468 Studio
________________________________________________________________________
2015 Course
Description from GSU Catalogue:
Graphic Design Portfolio. Prerequisites:
GrD 3200 with grade of C or higher, and consent of graphic design coordinator
or instructor. Preparation of final professional portfolio; consolidation and
revision of previous projects; addition of projects reflecting student's
specialized interests; self-promotion; presentation; interviewing; the language
of graphic design in the context of the fine arts. Lab Fee: $20.00.
2015 University Requirements:
Seniors must satisfy all the College of
Arts & Sciences, School of Art and Design and University requirements prior
to
their expected graduation date. Seniors
must have already applied for Graduation and also have delegated an official
audit transcript from the Registrars office prior to the end of this semester.
Seniors must insure that they have the minimum amount of credit hours to
graduate from the University and have fulfilled the required number of credit
hours within their discipline (60hours + in area G.)
2015 Student-Directed
Links:
All students in this class are responsible for creating and maintaining a
daily/weekly/monthly blogger/tumblr/website site that relates directly to your
interaction with graphic design, illustration, animation and fine art. (This
may also be in the form of a website should the student wish.) This type of “online
sketchbook/design book” is in lieu of the more traditional paper versions
associated with fine art (drawing sketchbooks.) Everyone must participate and
all blogs should be available to others.
This design blog is crucial to the fundamental
development of each student and how they think, process and experiment with
outside influences as a designer. The blogs are also an important design tool
with regards to how students share creativity with others inside & outside
the graphic design program. It also serves as a place to archive work for
posterity. Others in will view these design links and possibly others,
including Instructors, outside of the classroom so be professional with the
work you put into these online sites. Nothing controversial or adult oriented
should be on your blogs. If you have questions about this just ask the
Instructor.
The Instructor will be giving blog assignments you
need to complete as well as your own blog entries showing your work in progress
and the work that you will finish so others can see. It is also a “design
vault” of your work for future references.
The student blogs will count for 10% of the final grade so it should be taken
seriously.
Blogger, Typepad, Tumblr are three examples of reputable sites where students
can sign up for their free services.
*No profanity and no adult content are allowed on any of the student blogs. You
may also wish to include work from other classes but it should focus primarily
on the GrD3200 experience. If any student publishes any materials that are
deemed by the professor as inappropriate (this includes any images that are
found online or personally created) the student can be dropped from the class.
No exceptions. This includes comments made on other students blogs.
I take this very seriously and inappropriate content
will not be tolerated.
2015 Software Programs:
Students will be using Adobe Creative Suite programs during the interim of this
course.
Although the Graphic Design program does not endorse Mac computers, most art
students seem to work more proficiently and easily on this computer platform.
Every student is expected and encouraged to learn all the software programs
outside the classroom experience. Most of the classroom lab time will focus on
the conceptual part of graphic design process, although demonstrations will be
provided from time to time for specific projects. You must continue to learn
the programs on your own outside the classroom experience. If you need
additional assistance with learning software programs there are several places
students can visit which will prove to be very beneficial. (See Digital
Aquarium at GSU for classes (all classes and printouts are free) or you can use
Lynda.com that the University provides for free. Sign up now!
Tentative Grading
Criteria:
Students are required to complete all the coursework as prescribed by the
Instructor’s deadlines. See Deadlines for additional grading procedures. It’s possible the percentages
could change but students will be notified.
Forthcoming assignments:
1. PromaxBDA Student Challenge 20%
2. Individual Voice Project 20%
3. Final Assignment: 7 Deadly Sins 20%
4. Branding: Stationery, Envelopes, Business Cards and Specialty Leave Behind
Promotional Item 20%
5. GSU 2015 Student Juried Exhibition and BFA Exhibition 5%
6. Absences/Tardy/Class Participation 5%
7. Artist Statement and Resumes 5%
8. Blog/Tumblr/Website with Assignments in progress and what you are looking at as designers 5%
100 points total in this semester
2015 Assignments:
Students are subjected to many types of different Instructors and their various
methods of teaching during their undergraduate years. Therefore it is necessary
for students to remain open to the classroom experience as well as to the
critiques from their peers. It is the intent and preparation by these
Instructors that students gain the basic intermediate education during the semester
in order to prepare themselves for future classes or for application to the BFA
graphic design program and beyond. Your class will move at its own pace and
assignments can and will vary from the other instructors/classes being taught.
One Instructors opinion can (and probably will) vary from other Instructors. Be
open for those opinions and then form your own conclusion. Every student will
be treated equally regardless of whether or not the student is making
application to major in Graphic Design at the end of the semester.
2015 Critiques:
All students must learn to discuss their work during critiques, as they would
have to do in a business/client working relationship. Students will also be
required to submit a creative brief along with all the work due at class
critiques. Students should learn the art of discussion about their creative
work in a classroom environment. Written
creative briefs will accompany every project and should be turned in on time.
These creative briefs should be kept short and precise.
All work at critiques must be printouts unless otherwise noted by the
Instructor. No excuses.
There will be minimal amount of critiques. Most times
the professor will critique one-on-one with the senior designer.
However, there will be announced deadlines and
critiques that everyone must attend and participate in as part of the
curriculum set forth by the Instructor. Do not miss or be late for critiques
because it is as if you didn’t participate if you are either late or tardy.
(Tardy means coming in after the critique has started.)
2015 Deadlines:
Each assignment will have sufficient time allotted in order to compete the
necessary work prior to critiques. A completion date (deadline) will be
announced at the beginning of each assignment and documented on the syllabus.
Deadlines are usually accompanied by an in-class critique. All finished work is
due at the announced deadline regardless of whether or not the student is
present or not at the critique. Failure to complete projects by due date will result
in an automatic “F” for the project regardless of how much time and effort
might have been put into the project. One of the most important aspects of
becoming a professional graphic designer is managing time in order to complete
each assignment. Learn how to manage your time now and the future will be much
less stressful and more creative.
“Late” means that once the critique has begun you will
be considered to be “late.”
Everyone is given ample time to arrive to class on time. A critique will begin once a majority of
students have arrived.
Meeting a deadline is crucial to the understanding of personal time management
and professional standards in the industry.
Time management works in tandem with creativity. True
understanding of time management increases you productivity, thus eliminating
stress at critiques. Build in prep time for printing and any possible snafus
that may occur with each project. Think ahead and be prepared. This includes
drive time to class, production problems, sickness, weather conditions, and
other emergencies that may arise unexpectedly.
* If a student foresees a problem with a due date/deadline it is the student’s
responsibility to contact the Instructor prior to the critique. Communication
with the Instructor is important if any problem arises regarding any course
situation.
2015Absences:
Every student is expected to arrive on time and leave at the end of each class
period. This is also important on the days when critiques are scheduled. Arriving late and leaving early may be
considered absences. It depends on when the Instructor takes roll and if the
student is late or leaves early when the roll is taken then the Instructor will
consider the student “absent”. Students
are allowed 3 absences (this includes unexcused/excused) per Semester. The
Instructor will issue a warning after the 3rd absence (email and verbal) to the
student. For every absence after the 3rd absence the student’s final
grade for the semester will be lowered by 1 letter grade. Please understand
this important part of the grading process. There is no negotiation in this
area. Habits student’s form early on inside a classroom usually follow them
into the professional world.
Learn to make good choices and habits now.
2015 Tardiness:
Students who arrive after the critique has begun will
receive an “F” unless the student has discussed it with the professor prior to
the beginning of the class. Unexcused absences and habitual tardiness (arriving
late and leaving early) is usually evidence that the student is not taking the
course seriously or not focused on completing the projects set forth in this
course syllabi.
Each student is allowed 3 absences before the final
grade is lowered one letter grade for each additional absence.
Tardy means coming to class after it has started.
2015 Academic Dishonesty Policy/Plagiarism:
Read this policy on the University website. Understand
this policy.
Anyone in my class who is determined to be
plagiarizing other work will be dropped from the class and will be investigated
by the Dean of Students for further disciplinary actions. Don’t do it!
Being inspired is NOT the same as copying someone’s
work. Inspiration is about using that work by someone else as a source of
enlightenment and suggests only that you would like to create something similar
in aesthetics. Copying work/plagiarism
can be deemed as using templates found on the web; taking
images/photographs/original type from other resources that don’t belong to you.
You cannot buy or sample or appropriate any work that doesn’t belong to you or
that you didn’t create unless you have direct approval from the
professor/instructor. If and when the Professor/Instructor grants permission
for use of other materials to you then you must also credit the source on your
own final work.
Inspire: to make (someone) want to do
something: to give (someone) an idea about what to do or create: to cause
(something) to happen or be created: to cause someone to have (a feeling or
emotion)
Plagiarize: to use the words or ideas of another person as if they were your
own words or ideas.
(Definitions of courtesy:
Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
Plagiarism continues to be a huge problem in most
areas of graphic design. Since the invention of the Internet people have been
downloading, swiping, and sampling other people’s artwork and words and
claiming them for their own. This is type of behavior is not permitted in the
classroom as well in the professional world. There are exceptions that might
allow others to use someone else’s work but usually that is when the work
becomes footnoted or given proper credit in the format that it is being used in
the work created by the designer.
GSU has a very tough policy on plagiarism that every student should be aware of
in the University catalog. This includes expulsion from not only the particular
class but possibly from the University as well.
(http://www2.gsu.edu/~wwwdos/codeofconduct_conpol.html)
The easiest route around plagiarism is to always create your own work. It is
ultimately your own artistic voice that wants to succeed. Take your own photos,
write your own words/copy, and illustrate your own imagery. Everyone can
certainly be inspired by others work but let that translate only into
inspiration to motivation of your own work.
Every student in my class is expected to create their
own imagery for all their projects. All work that has not been created,
conceived or produced by the student and used in this course will be considered
plagiarism. The only exception to this rule is if the chosen client gives you
written or verbal permission for you to use some of their existing work and to
incorporate that into your own work for the semester.
No one can ever accuse another student of plagiarism if they work off their own
creativity.
Please do not purchase stock photography or illustrations from other reputable
companies.
Create your own library of images. Pinterest is a great bank to archive work
that inspires you.
2015
Calendar: Important Dates
First
Day of Class: Monday January 12th
MLK
Holiday: Monday January 19th
Midterm:
March 02nd
Spring
Break: March 16th – 20th
Classes
End: Monday April 2tth
Senior
Exit Reviews: May TBA
2015 Important CTW
notes:
Portfolio class falls under the University
CTW (Critical Thinking through Writing) class which means each of you will be
required to write more during the duration of this class. This writing is
evaluated and processed by the Art Department and University to meet standards
and practices for the University and their NASAD accreditation.
This course is designated as the first of two Critical
Thinking Through Writing (CTW) courses required of BFA Graphic Design Majors.
This component of the course required engaging students through writing, in
critical thinking relation to the course material. The University defines
critical thinking as:
“…A wide range of cognitive skills and intellectual
dispositions needed to effectively identify, analyze, and evaluate arguments
and truth claims; to discover and overcome personal prejudices; to formulate
and present convincing reasons in support of conclusions; and to make
reasonable, intelligent decisions about what to believe and what to do.”
(Bassham, Irwin, Nardone & Wallace, Critical
Thinking: A Student’s Introduction, (McGraw-Hill, 2005, p. 1.)
Seniors must complete this class with a
passing grade of C or Higher before they can graduate.
Seniors will be asked to complete a
certain number of new design projects during the spring semester as well as
work on finishing up other portfolio requirements. Seniors will be asked to
sign an official course contract which will exists between the student and the
Professor. Seniors should honor this contract as a formal declaration of
completing work described on the contract. At the end of the semester the
Professor will sign off on the contract thereby allowing the student to
graduate.
2015 Specifics about Portfolio:
Seniors must show up to class on time and
have coursework to show during those class meetings. There will be formal
critiques and discussion and presentations which all seniors must be
present. No senior will be permitted to
miss more than 3 class periods unless authorized by the Professor. If the
student misses more than 3 class periods, the student will be notified via
email confirmation as well as a verbal notification of this final absence. After
official notification by professor as previously mentioned, the Professor has
the right to drop student from enrollment. Students missing more than 3
absences will also have their final grade lowered one letter grade for each
additional absence.
2015 Senior Exit Reviews:
Seniors who are graduating from the Ernest
G. Welch School of Art and Design at the end of this semester must go through a
formal 45-minute individual Senior Exit Review with the entire faculty from the
graphic design department. Each student
will be allowed 45 minutes each to present their portfolio of work (minimum of
20 boards) as well as exhibit their working website and any
videos/films/packaging projects. Students can use this time to show print,
animations and various other work of their choice.
At some point during the semester you will
be directed to sign up for your Senior Exit Review at the end of the spring
semester. It will be first come, first serve according to the times and dates
allotted. You will be expected to
show up at this Review on time and
prepared otherwise you will not graduate on time. No exceptions.
Students will also leave individual
sets/copies of their stationery and resumes and leave behinds for each of their
faculty reviewers: (Liz Throop, Paige Taylor, Jeff Boortz,
Jason Snape and Stan Anderson)
All faculty must sign-off on each senior
in order to for them to graduate on time.
-Stationery sets must include printed
business cards, letterhead, and envelopes.
-Hi-Res PDFs of all their work, including
all animations and video work (several CDs)
-Specialty Leave Behind or Self
-promotional piece
-Current Resumes with correct information
on the entire stationery set (letterhead/envelope/business card)
-Working Website(s) created in Senior
Workshop with Assistant Professor Paige Taylor
-Portfolio case for
interviewing/discussion of work to be shown at interviews
2015 Possible Design
Projects for Spring Semester:
1. The Individual Voice Project: To be decided by Professor
and individual designers. (Mandatory) Every
designer has a project, a concept, and an idea that has yet to be
realized. It might be an assignment that
you started but never got to finish or a project that you’ve put on the back
burner for a long time, or even a project that you feel is necessary to your
portfolio to “round you out” in terms of demonstrating a more broad appeal to
future clients and job possibilities.
2. Promax BDA Student
Story Challenge
n television marketing, the job is to
promote a network brand, a television show or a special television event like
the Emmys, the Oscars or the MLB All-Star Game to
an audience with an objective to get them to watch. If you were to produce a :30,
:60 or :90 spot promoting your own personal
brand, what would your story be? What images would you use? What would be your soundtrack? And what words would
best promote you? Take a minute. Think about who you are. What do you love?
How are you unique? What makes you the talent you are? Storytelling is at the heart of all marketing
and promotion, so now, give us your story. www.promaxbda.org/awards/current-awards/2015-student-story-challenge
3.Personal Branding: Stationery/Letterhead/Business Card Project. All
Seniors should have business cards printed professionally. (Mandatory)
4.Senior Resumes Updated
& Introduction letters & Follow-up
Letters. (Mandatory)
5. Self Promotion “Leave Behind” creating a promotional one-of-a-kind
design piece to market yourself. (Mandatory)
2015 Speakers, Presentations and Interstitial Information:
1. Entry of work
into the 2015 Welch Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition. (Mandatory)
2. Entry of work
into 2015 Senior Portfolio Exhibition. (Mandatory)
3. Photographing your work professionally project. (Mandatory)
4. Interviewing
with your Portfolio: Video presentations and rehearsals in-class. (Mandatory)
5. Graphic
Designers and Your Taxes discussion. Guest Speaker
6. What every
Graphic Designer should know about Copyrighting and the Law: Speaker
7. Climbing the professional
ladder: How a graphic designer works, lives and survives inside their jobs: Speaker
8. Design Inventory:
Presentations to entire class on your past history of design and what you plan
to
carry with you at your Senior Exit Review
as well as your job interviews.
TIME TO GET STARTED:
Your Ticket to Ride
-Taking Inventory of your
Work:
Each Senior Designer is expected to gather up all
their past work created either at GSU as well as any work that might have been
done for a client in freelance, part time, fulltime or internship.
The first few weeks of class will be spend combing
through every designers past work and then cataloging that work into what each
student plans to use on their website as well as during their exit review.
Every designer will go through the process with every member of the class. Time
has been set aside to review individually and collectively this work in its
entirety.
Designers should keep a working list (mapping) of the
work that they feel might need some type of revision as well as work that will
be completely removed from the portfolio process.
Take a Visual Inventory of your work immediately.
Everything you’ve done during your time at GSU upon
entering the first GrD3000 class.
Leave no stone unturned as you review your work and
perhaps re-evaluate the work as the senior designer you have become.
A list of categories where each previous work will
fall should be kept:
(Categories such as “Definitely” or “Needs Revision”
or “No Way” or “Total Re-design” can get the process started. This should be
done prior to the in class review the first few weeks of semester.
Designers should also think about which work needs to
be re-printed as well as work completed in another discipline (photography,
book arts, printmaking, etc.) This other work can be sparing shown in the
Senior Graphic Design Exit Review but can really be displayed in more depth on
their websites.
This will be presented in class as well as a printed
document of all images that you intend to carry in your portfolio.
It’s a visual reminder of color, texture, typography,
style, print, video, web, etc. 2015
2015 Individual Voice Design
Project:
Since entering the Graphic Design program at GSU a few
years ago, each of you have been asked to perform and experience certain
degrees of proficiency which are universal to most graphic design majors in
their respective schools.
Throughout your time at GSU I’m sure each of you have
discovered your strengths and your weaknesses but most importantly is that each
of you have perhaps identified areas of interest which you have wanted to
pursue with more in depth investigation.
This semester you will have a chance to identify what you feel are those
missing creative “gaps” in your design education and portfolio by writing your
own creative contract on work to be completed. This contract will exist between
student and instructor.
In this project each student will identify a set of
creative goals/ideas by writing them down with some detail of what they wish to
accomplish in its final presentation. These ideas should be specific in what
each student wishes to accomplish. Students will also present their ideas to
the rest of the class for feedback before initiating the agreed upon individual
project.
Graduating students will bring in their entire
portfolio of work to review with the class and Instructor prior to starting
their Individual project. This process will take some time but will result in a
more thoughtful and applicable project for the semester.
The idea of how to begin this senior design class
began during a senior trip to NYC in October 2007 to visit design studios. Many
of the Art Directors (Psyop and Trollback and Nick) stated that they are always
looking for new design recruits based on what they can “uniquely” offer to
their respective companies and design firms. They are seeking designers who
have a style that is unique which has been described as their “inner design
voice.” This project will allow you to
literally ‘flush out” your uniquely personal graphic design goals. You might
wish to create a set of animations based on your interest in art or travel or
language; others might wish to create a uniquely different set of print work;
many of you might wish to work on typographical areas of your portfolio which
you feel need more attention.
Each project for each student should be uniquely
different. That is the strength of this project.
You think it and you design it!
Do you need more print and editorial work?
Do you need more Illustration work?
Do you need more animation?
Do you need more political work?
Do you want to show more of your multimedia work?
Learning to discover (and uncover) your unique “voice”
as a creative person can be a life-changing experience.
Finding your “inner voice” as a designer certainly
will allow you to become more self-confident when you begin your job search
upon graduation.
Projected Time allotted is 4 weeks.
2015 Personal Branding /
Stationery Project:
“Who am I anyway? Am I my resume?”
This musical quote comes from one of Broadway’s
greatest and most successful musicals entitled “A Chorus Line.” This entire production is about Branding (dancing
perhaps in this case) but really about who we are as individuals.
How do you single yourself out from the rest and make
a name and place for yourself in the design world?
What’s in a name?
What’s in your name?
Will you create something iconic for yourself or will
your name be a special font/typeface which your adhere to in your
Professional world?
Do you create an alter ego name or brand for yourself
or do you use your own name as your brand?
The work you are doing in GrD4600 Senior Workshop
should tie into this branding project as you work on your individual
Websites (which are required prior to graduation.)
Seniors are required to have a printed business card
and stationery set ready prior to graduation.
This may include (but not limited to a variety of)
letterhead, business cards, and envelopes.
2015 Specialty Graphic Design
“Leave-Behind” aka The Self-Promotional Project:
These specially designed pieces should be designed to
catch the eye of the client the student will be interviewing for jobs in the future. Many times an interviewer may not
remember the students name or even their work but will remember their “leave
behind” design. These can take many
forms such as brochures, books, 3-D pieces, pop out material, etc.
There is no formula for this as each piece is
different for each student.
At the Senior Exit Review each graduation senior will
leave these specialty pieces with each of their faculty as well as a set of
student stationery sets with the faculty.
Think about the message you want to send to the person
reviewing your work. It might be a freshly designed mouse pad or an iPod cover
design or printed book of all your work or a calendar of the forthcoming year
that was specially designed. Being clever and imaginative about your work and
yourself is key in this individual project.
Check out Design annuals such as Step or How to see
what students across the nation are doing for their own Self-promotional items. This is a great way to start your own process
I kid you not.
2015
Ernest G. Welch School of Art and Design Annual Juried Student Competition:
Open to all art students, this annual juried
exhibition is a cumulative exhibition of selected artwork from students all disciplines in the Welch School of Art and
Design. Graphic Designers can enter work
that has been created in past classes or create a unique piece for this juried
exhibition. Work submitted for this Annual Student Exhibition does not have to
be graphic design but can be anything you wish to enter. Awards and recognition of those selected to
be in the exhibition will be announced at the opening of the Exhibition. It’s
an annual student gathering in the Welch Galleries. Mandatory submissions of
work by all graphic designers.
2015
BFA Exhibition:
Participating in your BFA Exhibition in the spring
prior to graduation from the Graphic Design program at GSU is mandatory for
everyone. This senior exhibition is geared to focus on all the graduating
senior’s artistic achievements in their respective majors. Graphic Designers
can choose to exhibit animations, print and editorial work, film and television
and various other conceptual work for the senior exhibition. The work must have
been done while as a student at GSU or outside professional work with consent
of professor only. This is deemed as mandatory in order to graduate.
We’ll discuss individually and collectively to assist
you in identifying some of your best work considered to be included into the
spring exhibition while also finding ways to creatively display those pieces of
work for the show.
During this time of identifying work for the senior
BFA show, we will spend several days in class to actually photograph many
pieces and parts of your portfolio. We’ll take a look at how the professionals
have photographed their work in the various Design Annuals and Periodicals and
discuss what seems to work and what definitely doesn’t work as a
photograph. Everyone is encouraged to
bring new ideas regarding how they wish to photograph their work (3D,
brochures, book covers, CD redesigns, etc.)
How do you display your 3D work?
What do you need to show your animations?
Do you frame your work? How? With what?
Can I submit a series of work as one project?
Discussion of how each designer should begin to select
and get work ready for their senior BFA exhibition.
All seniors are required to have work in this senior
exit exhibition.
Group discussion of presentation formats for video or
print or 3D work.
Framing and mounting will be discussed.
Seniors will probably be encouraged by the gallery
director to have only one entry…however, this one entry can be a series or
designs such as posters on a certain subject or a triptych of a project. Many
times the gallery director will allow students to show video work (everyone’s
video work compiled into one DVD and projected at the exhibition) as well as
printed work.
Seniors must attend the Gallery BFA Senior Exit review
meeting prior to the exhibition.
Work usually must be picked up after graduation or
designers will have to make other arrangements for pick up.
All work in this exhibition by all the disciplines in
the School of Art & Design must come from work completed during your time
at GSU as an undergraduate.
2015 Sign
Up for Senior Exit Review
2015
Rehearsals for Senior Exit Review (Selected Individuals)
