The Graphic Student

“Ringling College of Art and Design is a private, not-for-profit, fully accredited college offering the Bachelor’s degree  in 13 disciplines: Advertising Design, Business of Art & Design, Computer Animation, Digital Film, Fine Arts, Game Art & Design, Graphic & Interactive Communication, Illustration, Interior Design, Painting, Photography & Digital Imaging, Printmaking and Sculpture.”

And they produce incredible work (which I can’t link to - so click on Student Art on their homepage). Not only is the student work incredible, but they showcase it beautifully. The website invites you to check out the campus, which sounds beautiful, and have lunch with some of the students and faculty. I think I’m in love.

that my current project revolves around this…

…would you be jealous?

Tell us about some of your favourite school projects you’re working on or have worked on in the past. I’m currently redesigning the packaging for the KONG dog toy - which in my opinion is the most iconic dog toy next to the bone. I’ve really only just begun research, but I’m excited about where this could go. What projects have gotten you excited?

It’s been awhile since our last school promotional video, so here you go. Welcome to Wisconsin’s Technical College. Before I get into what I think of this ad, I have to say something. Art schools/programs that are going to take themselves seriously (like the one above) should never ever use bank gothic. I’m sure the font had its time, but it is no longer that modern, edgy face all colleges seem to think it is. It looks like someone flipped through the font book, saw bank gothic, and reacted with “wicked!” - not the type of font to showcase design education. My college did it with their promo video, and it’s really just embarassing.

Now, as for the video above… even though the clip doesn’t make the school seem very desirable, the student narrators seem so friendly, I’m having a hard time pointing out the weak points. Plus, they show the students doing work off the computers which is a huge plus in my books. To be honest, this program appears to be very similar to the one I’m in, which is great. But I’m almost positive that unless you’ve experienced the working environment of a small college’s graphic design program, you won’t be motivated to attend one. They don’t have the culture and attitude of the large schools (as this video clearly shows) - but there is a humility that can give these students an edge.

So this raises the question of how to market a school like this. There has to be a way to showcase the positives of a small college without looking cheesy. It also shouldn’t come across as a school in downtown Toronto or New York or in the heart of Germany. I haven’t done the research to really know how to market the school, but I know the Wisconsin Technical College could be done much better.

Where’s the line for students that separates spec work from a legitimate opportunity? Do real world clients really benefit students? I finished a school project today for a large motorcycle/streetbike company. They had us design graphics to help market two specific bikes. The “winner”, or chosen designer, will receive $500, and the two runners up will receive something of lesser value. As for the 24 other students? I’m sure there will be a big thank you for the hard work.

This sounds like I think the assignment was spec work. And by definition, it is… I think. But I actually see this as more of an opportunity to get our work out there. Whether there was a real client or not, we would still be doing the work because we are in school… having a big company give a few of us some money is just a nice perk. If it makes you more comfortable, call it a contest.

However, I do believe this is a dangerous situation for all parties involved (students, school, and client). What happens when a big company hears about willing schools, decides to cut their design budget in half, and approaches the innocent students with promises of great prizes? Nobody is getting a fair cut through this. Students will be used for their talent, and companies will receive either trendy or mediocre work; not because the students aren’t talented, but because it is impossible to have the designer-client relationship necessary to produce outstanding quality design work. Nobody can expect a company to sit down with each and every student individually, pitch their project, and answer questions (sure they can do it in front of the whole class, but that’s not the same). After that, update meetings consist of 30 second check-ins at the work station. Professors will work hard to be a good bridge between the student and client, which can be effective - but it’s not the same as having that stressful discussion with the real client, hoping he/she will smile when you’re finished rambling about the symbolism in your work.

The motorcycle company who approached us with this current project is not receiving the best possible results in my opinion. If they sat down with a design team, laid out exactly what needs to be done, and worked through the process together, they would no doubt have a winning collection of graphics. Instead, they will be receiving some very attractive, but very scattered options - similar to the idea of throwing s*** at a wall and seeing what sticks.

What if design schools stopped teaching students how to sell culture, and taught them how to shape it?

Something I heard on Fashion Television tonight that stopped me in my tracks. 

“Colleges and creative consultancies have come under fire from leading digital designers for creating what they see as an inappropriate separation between creative and technical skills.”

Design Observer linked to an article today on Design Week. It discusses the challenge design teachers have of balancing design education with teaching technology. When does a photoshop class end and real design theory start? There are students I’ve spoken to who believe too much technology is taught in schools (sometimes I’m one of them), and students who run away from their Macs in terror because they don’t know the difference between the pen tool and the crop tool.

I’m having trouble finding the comments section on the site, but you should go and discuss it. This is something that should be discussed more often in the design education community. I suspect it’s one of the more challenging aspects of teaching.

When Maryland Institute College of Art’s new Pentagram designed identity was launched last year, the design community went crazy. It was when I first took notice of the school. Since then, I’ve always come back to the identity as inspiration, but I never really looked into the school itself. Fortunately, MICA does what all art/design schools should do - they post student work on their website. What better way to judge the abilities of a program than to see what they’re producing? Go have a look at all the work from graphic design, to experimental animation. There’s some beautiful work!

We’re taking a quick survey over here. What design/art magazines do you subscribe to or read? To get the ball rolling, and list one of the more obvious titles, I subscribe to Print magazine. It’s worth it if only for the annuals that come - they’re stocked full of incredible, inspiring work. Your turn.

Earlier in September we mentioned Keenan Cummings’ thesis project - the redesign of his school’s newspaper. All I had seen then was one image launching the project. Since then, he has posted many photos of the project on flickr - and it is beautiful. It doesn’t cross the line of too designy. I think both designers and non-designers can appreciate the design equally. The graphics are interesting and clean, and the information, from what I can see, reads very nicely.

Go check out the photos (and the site).

Stumbled across some potentially great material tonight. The Alberta College of Art & Design is featuring a number of blogs from their students. Ever wonder what design school is like in Alberta, Canada? This might be the place to find out. Not as pretty as it could be, and still early on in their life, the blogs will hopefully be an interesting look into the design world where most people, well, don’t think there is a design world. I’ll be following these for sure. The image(s) above are those of ACAD student Inger Marthe.