course descriptions

sophomore year

DESN 201
Visual Inquiry
(6 credit hours)
As creative practitioners and makers, graphic designers are engaged with the powers and persuasions of the visual realm. We will engage in a deep study of the elements and principles of design, gestalt theory, color, composition, image/text combination, collage and montage, photography, sequential and nonlinear narrative as techniques and processes to help define and use image-making strategies for communication. Through the introduction of the design process — research, ideation/iteration, prototyping, testing, we will examine the designers’ roles in society as well as contextualize ethics, sustainability and resilience in design practice. We will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 221
Type & Image
(3 credit hours)
We are constantly surrounded by text and images that inform, assist, persuade, and entertain us. Understanding these two fundamental building blocks of graphic design is critical to successful design practice. Consider this your starting point for a critical dive into making meaningful and conceptually-driven images, text, and the gray space between them. With an eye toward breadth and range and a bias toward making, we will explore typographic history, classification, and its roles as “language made visible” in information and visual expression. We’ll practice using a wide range of expected and unexpected analog and digital image-making tools and media, from pens and brushes to digital photo/video and all points in between.

DESN 241
Graphic Design History
(3 credit hours)
As critical thinkers and makers, the strongest graphic designers must develop an understanding of visual communication from prehistory to the present as a critical history of social, cultural and technological change. We will examine the history of the written word, production methods, mass communication, and other modes and means of design to study the changing values and ideas around distribution, circulation, literacy, and other activities core to design. Research methodologies establish and reinforce a foundation for independent research and writing. We will engage in group conversations to discuss, activate and share insights and ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 202
Communication Inquiry
(3 credit hours)
We are in near-constant communication every day, yet most people have no idea of the underlying processes and concepts that govern how and why communication works in the ways it does. Understanding the fundamentals of a range of communication theories is vital for graphic designers to practice effectively with a deep understanding of the “why” and “how” of what we do. Through active and exploratory questioning, we will dig in to theories such as semiotics, rhetoric, modes of persuasion, communication theory and similar ideas to understand what they are, how they work, and their impacts on graphic design and society at large in both commercial and social/civic contexts.

DESN 242
Media Inquiry
(3 credit hours)
We are living in an age of rapid and constant expansion of media. Our tools and platforms — our modes and means to design and tell stories — are advancing at bewildering rates. A fluency in how to effectively communicate with various media forms, and a fluidity to design across a diverse array of media channels, are essential traits for graphic designers operating in this exciting age of transmedia. We'll gain experience and skill in the technical processes of a graphic design practice, acquiring a basic command of our core toolset — Adobe Creative Suite — with an emphasis on the principles of how to most effectively operate across multiple programs. Additionally, we'll explore HTML/CSS, best practices in file building and management, creative hardware applications, and other processes that will allow us to continue on the most fruitful path of further inquiry and to build towards a proficient design practice. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 222
Type & Image
(3 credit hours)
To continue our exploration of the visual power of type & image, we will investigate the wide-ranging possibilities of various formal combinations of text and image to produce meaning that is vital to social and cultural communication systems. issues of composition and hierarchy, simultaneity and sequencing of image & text, together and in isolation, will be addressed through 2d, 3d, and 4d experimentation.

JUNIOR YEAR

DESN 321
Interaction Inquiry*
(6 credit hours)
Deliberate integration of interaction and usability is now a prerequisite for all graphic design work. Using both digital and analog technologies, we will examine fundamental principles governing this ever-evolving field. By wireframing, studying mobile-first methodologies, prototyping, and introducing ourselves to information architecture, user interface design, and user-experience principles, we focus on the user as the center of our designs in both social/civic and commercial contexts. Considerations for project usability are gathered through user testing methodologies and seen through user-centered design fundamentals. In advanced levels we work with hardware and software applications (physical sensors, machine learning, internet of things, VR/AR, etc.) and emerging technologies that integrate with user interactions. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 341
Branding and Identity Inquiry*
(6 credit hours)
With a fluency and fluidity to design with and in a transmedia world, for diverse audiences and contexts that are constantly shifting between modes of reception, we have the opportunity to create deep meaning and impact through the design of comprehensive systems. We will explore the full scope of the identity and branding design process, from research to concept development to production, learning how to apply an array of conceptual and visual elements across various media to create a cohesive system. We will investigate practical and speculative approaches, research new trends and strategies, and broaden our understanding of how design can help establish a unified message. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources. A second iteration of this course has students exploring advanced branding and identity topics such as non-formal theoretical approaches to identity design, guerrilla branding, participatory identity design, designing for subcultures, and the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence.

DESN 361
Information and Data Visualization Inquiry*
(6 credit hours)
An information and attention economy requires that quantitative and qualitative data, news, statistics, processes, and instructions take on clear, understandable, and investigatable visual form. This enhances the viewer’s ability to understand and analyze information or accomplish tasks. Together we will immerse ourselves in foundational principles of information design, diagramming and mapping systems and processes, visualization of the concrete and abstract, systems thinking, and consider the ethical issues such as data bias and use/misuse of data. Students repeating this course will utilize emerging technologies and innovative creative applications to create interactive/dynamic information environments, increasingly complex data sets and systems, and speculative approaches. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 301
Research and Process
(3 credit hours)
An empathetic and nuanced understanding of audience is part and parcel of effective graphic design work, as are iterative and expansive processes that center those for whom we design. Together, we will examine current practices in socially-centered, human-centered, and ethnographic design research methods. Process exploration into participatory, co-design, and experimental approaches at both the micro- and macro-level will broaden our understanding of how we might engage our practice in new ways, resulting in more empowering, inclusive, and effective graphic design work.

DESN 322
Interdisciplinary Inquiry
(6 credit hours)
As graphic designers with an expansive practice and a skillset built for transmedia communication, we are particularly equipped for interdisciplinary collaboration. We will engage with diverse makers and thinkers outside our department to form collaborative project teams, working together to address complex issues in social/civic, and/or commercial contexts through practical and theoretical projects. We will develop various collaboration strategies and methods in skill and resource sharing, team management, group research, participatory workshop facilitation, and diversity and inclusion best practices, among others. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 342
Social Innovation Inquiry
(6 credit hours)
As creative thinkers and makers, graphic designers have much to contribute to the complex societal issues we face with respect to justice, equity, sustainability, [dis]ability, and a range of other wicked problems worthy of our attention. We also have a responsibility to people and planet to undertake our work within a thoughtful ethical framework. Through a student-initiated, question-led process, we will explore these interrelated topics in a holistic, strategic, and systematic way. We will respectfully center our audience and their relationships to the issue in a co-design process, with media, communication strategy, context, and visual form following suit, leading to innovative design propositions that seek to improve our world within both social/civic and commercial contexts. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 302
Professional Practices
(3 credit hours)
As contemporary graphic designers, we must understand the ways in which we develop, frame and share our work and processes. With focus on portfolio presentation and resume development, we will develop experience in documentation, writing, presenting, public speaking, and other essential skills to prepare for creative opportunities beyond the classroom. To support and shape our experiences within the studio and understand the broader design landscape, we will attend studio visits, research firms and studios, and engage in informational interviews with professional designers.

SENIOR YEAR

DESN 422
Self-Directed Inquiry
(6 credit hours)
This student-led inquiry serves as an opportunity for each student to propose, design and produce a complex, multi-part project addressing a unique topic and focus of your choosing. Through a self-directed design process of research, problem identification and inquiry, we will focus on people, communication, and media in commercial and social/civic contexts. Complex visual systems will be addressed through 2D, 3D, and 4D experimentation. To support and shape our experiences within the studio, we will discuss insights and share ideas we glean from reading, watching, and listening to a range of relevant sources.

DESN 401
Type / Media Inquiry
(3 credit hours)
As creative thinkers and makers, graphic designers are particularly aware of the power of type and image. In this student-initiated, question-led process and structure, each student will investigate the finer points of the art and craft of typography and/or image to produce meaning that is vital to social and cultural communication systems. Activating our cumulative knowledge, we will choose a focus area for the semester and investigate those ideas through a series of projects. Focus on composition, sequence and narrative, simultaneity and sequencing of image & text, together and in isolation, will be addressed through 2D, 3D, and 4D experimentation.

*courses may be taken twice, during junior and senior year.