Graphic Design and Illustration

Graphic design showreel

Our students' work is the thing we are most proud of. Each year we see a huge amount of individual creativity. This is our attempt to remix the individual into a whole. We see it as a never-ending story.

You explore and expand your approaches to visual investigation and representation through drawing, image and printmaking. You create visual language through observation, response, emotive expression and visual enquiry, experimenting with ideas generation and establishing new ways of looking and thinking.

You are introduced to fundamental digital creative skills including digital image making and manipulation, composition, research, and creative thinking. You undertake a project where you learn about the importance of generating ideas.

You explore innovative ways of addressing creative problems through studio-based project work. You undertake a project, applying your knowledge and skills in an area of interest such as graphic design, illustration, advertising, branding, or sequence/interaction.

You are introduced to key art, design, architectural and cultural histories that are central to studying a creative subject. You explore a range of contexts and influences including art historical, ecological, critical theory, industrial, technological change, social and political movements, examining the changing face of art and design and informing your future research.

You gain experience of sequence as a fundamental aspect of your creative practice. You undertake a project, exploring both analogue and digital processes in the production of a piece of sequential design or illustration, with consideration given to the pace and timing of sequences and the relationship between moving and still images.

Type and image is the language of visual communicators. You explore their relationship, providing you with the knowledge to create visual compositions that have impact and meaning. You are introduced to the fundamentals of typography and the principles of composition.

You undertake an in-depth creative project in a specialist area of graphic design or illustration, relevant to your future professional practice. You explore themes that can be developed for a specified audience or in a wider cultural context. Live projects or competitions are considered as potential opportunities.

Develop your understanding of building a career in the creative industries through key skills in creative leadership, collaborative entrepreneurship and sustainability.

You develop your knowledge of visual communication principles and processes, and advance your practical skills using industry-standard software to produce work for print and screen.

Further investigate a range of contemporary social, environmental, technological and ethical issues to inform all types of art and design practice. You broaden your understanding of creativity as a practice-based form of contemporary social discourse and explore a variety of issues through the development, production and presentation of potential future scenarios.

Exploring how creative works can be situated in differing environments, and providing opportunities to inform, agitate, navigate, and enrich people's lives, is at the heart of this module. You develop an understanding of how design and illustration is being used, and could be used in, innovative ways in commercial, social and public indoor and outdoor settings. Your project allows you to research, develop and apply innovative conceptual solutions of your own in an interactive design project.

You explore the use of 'narrative' as a key element within creative practice.

You gain an understanding of how found or individually-generated narratives can be utilised imaginatively within design and illustrative practice to engage an audience. Thoughtful reflection on storytelling conventions enables you to enrich and extend the range of creative expression.

You have the option to spend one year in industry learning and developing your skills. We encourage and support you with applying for a placement, job hunting and networking.

You gain experience favoured by graduate recruiters and develop your technical skillset. You also obtain the transferable skills required in any professional environment, including communication, negotiation, teamwork, leadership, organisation, confidence, self-reliance, problem-solving, being able to work under pressure, and commercial awareness.

Many employers view a placement as a year-long interview, therefore placements are increasingly becoming an essential part of an organisation's pre-selection strategy in their graduate recruitment process. Benefits include:

· improved job prospects
· enhanced employment skills and improved career progression opportunities
· a higher starting salary than your full-time counterparts
· a better degree classification
· a richer CV
· a year's salary before completing your degree
· experience of workplace culture
· the opportunity to design and base your final-year project within a working environment.

If you are unable to secure a work placement with an employer, then you simply continue on a course without the work placement.

You undertake one or more competition projects or fulfil a live project brief, producing graphic or illustrative work that will influence the direction of your portfolio and be meaningful to prospective employers and/or clients.

You devise and undertake a major creative project that helps to consolidate and celebrate your individual strengths and skills. You initiate and/or select an appropriate negotiated brief, increasing your ability to manage a complex major project through all its stages, informed by an awareness of the relevant contexts and the needs of clients/users.

Strategy, creativity, and initiative are key features of this module. You are encouraged to develop a deeper understanding of professional creative practice as you continue to reflect on your learning and prepare for your future career. You create and develop visual material, considering print and digital/screen, that can be used in a variety of contexts for the purposes of self-promotion and/or exhibition.

You bring your project ideas to fruition, considering your own area of interest in the creative industries. It's key that you have an understanding of the strategic value of your project choice on your chosen career, and consequently the honing or development of skills required. You are encouraged to demonstrate a high-level of professional competence in the development and realisation of your project.