Graphic Design, Advertising & Illustration
Mika Petteri Vaajoki – BA (Hons) Graphic Design UCA Epsom
Tuesday Logan – BA (Hons) Illustration UCA Farnham
1
Foreword Liam Mockeridge – BA (Hons) Graphic Design: Visual Communications UCA Canterbury
2
UCA has been listed as the number one specialist creative university in The Guardian Good University Guide 2018 and the Complete University Guide 2018, and we’re proud to offer a strong portfolio of Graphic Design, Advertising & Illustration degree programmes.
BA (Hons) Illustration & Animation, for instance, will help you establish your own personal voice to communicate visually – you’ll look at applied drawing techniques, printing, editorial illustration and sequential design – whilst graphics courses will help you to become a multi-disciplinary designer or graphic artist. You can explore all of our courses within this subject area in this brochure. Our programmes are relatively small, providing you with good access to tuition and facilities. Our staff represent a range of backgrounds and experience – from commercial advertising and graphic design, to academic research-led practice. Most are active designers participating in exciting commercial/research projects. Resources include traditional printmaking, book production, animation, Mac suites, digital printing, 3D workshops, laser cutting, 3D printing, photography and video. You’ll have the opportunity to produce a wide variety of work here at UCA – our students create typographic responses to briefs, technology-driven interactive pieces challenging identity and interface design for crisis equipment. Live projects have included packaging of a retrospective box set for band The Pixies, animated ‘live windows’ for flagship Benetton stores and information design for the United Nations in Brussels and New York. Study with us and you’ll develop your own distinct and personal area of creative practice, underpinned by critical, conceptual and technical skill which will form the basis for your future creative career. Our graduates are creative, have a critical, conceptual and contextual understanding of the subject area, as well as analogue and digital technical skills. Jamie Dobson Head of School, Communication Design
3
Find the right course for you
BA (Hons) Advertising – UCA Farnham
BA (Hons) Graphic Communication – UCA Farnham
Taught by highly experienced practitioners with connections to the highest levels of the industry, our Advertising course offers you a unique opportunity to blend academic excellence with professional experience. Supported by some of the world’s bestknown creative directors – including Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK – our course continues to develop a mentoring scheme, giving you the chance to enter advertising better prepared than other graduates.
On this course we’ll introduce you to the vast array of avenues within graphic communication – from branding, typography and advertising, to print media, digital publishing and graphic design. You will have exciting opportunities to put your learning into practice with challenging live projects, competitions, and extra-curricular industry placements. By the time you graduate, you’ll be a design expert in your specialist field. Graduates from this course have achieved high-profile roles with leading names such as Burberry, Harper Collins, River Island and Sonic, working in areas of graphic communication such as branding, typography, editorial design, graphic design, freelance design and brand strategy.
By the end of the course, you’ll have built your own unique book of holistic ad campaigns, showcasing high levels of creativity in art direction and copywriting, as well as digital media. With our comprehensive curriculum, you’ll learn how to tackle challenging briefs both creatively and strategically, whilst developing a deep understanding of theory and its application in practice.
4
We offer a range of courses in graphic design, advertising and illustration
BA (Hons) Graphic Design – UCA Epsom We believe that Graphic Designers can make a key contribution to public life as critical thinkers and shapers of the future that we all share. Our broad-based Graphic Design course takes a practice-based look at the art of visual communication, learning
both analogue and digital skills such as typography, moving image and social design within an encouraging and inspiring environment. You’ll be taught by a team of practising industry professionals and researchers, and will have access to our full range of top-class facilities – including letterpress, screenprinting, and the latest computer suites. You’ll participate in live briefs, talks and studio visits and meet some of the most influential names in graphic design. We have a solid history of winning worldrenowned competitions at institutions, including the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) and the International Society of Typographic Designers (ISTD). Our graduates regularly forge successful and rewarding careers for themselves across a range of industries in roles such as editorial design, advertising, interactive design and branding, as well as postgraduate and research study.
BA (Hons) Graphic Design: Visual Communications – UCA Canterbury On our Graphic Design: Visual Communications course, you’ll build a theoretical understanding of the different techniques used to spread visual storytelling. You’ll discover how to use these techniques to develop your own projects in areas such as editorial design, motion graphics, book arts, photography and visual narrative. Using our dedicated studio spaces and benefiting from our strong industry links, you’ll begin to evolve your own style and voice as a designer, undertaking live projects and collaborating on a diverse range of assignments with other members of our uniquely collaborative creative community.
BA (Hons) Illustration (3 and 4 year routes available) – UCA Farnham Our long-established and renowned Illustration course has a strong reputation for visual narrative and storytelling, underpinned by an understanding that the best illustration is based on exciting, original ideas. You’ll investigate these concepts through drawing, text, sequential design, book production, moving image, printmaking, three-dimensional craft and creative writing. Based in studios equipped with high-calibre resources, you’ll also have access to an extensive range of facilities on campus for printmaking, book production, animation, ceramics, digital printing, 3D design, textiles, photography and video, reflecting the evolving nature of contemporary illustration. The course benefits from a wide range of industry links, with the likes of the Association of Illustrators, Ambit Magazine, The V&A, The Pound Shop, The Folio Society, Philosophers Magazine, BABE Artists Book Fair and Far Far Away Books.
BA (Hons) Illustration & Animation – UCA Canterbury Our Illustration & Animation course will encourage you to become an independent critical thinker and maker. You’ll be part of a lively and active community, supported by state-of-the-art studios and access to specialist tools and processes, including printmaking, bookmaking, letterpress, moving image, 3D work, photography, darkroom processes and industry standard software. You’ll develop your visual, oral and written communication skills, whilst engaging with technology and processes relevant to contemporary illustration and animation. We’ll enable you to communicate your ideas using traditional and emerging media, and you’ll learn how to construct narrative and meaning in a variety of contexts.
5
Stephanie Porter – BA (Hons) Graphic Design UCA Epsom
6
We cre
reate careers The UK has the largest design sector in Europe, employing 177,000 people and contributing £3.2billion to the economy. UCA is the number one specialist creative university (Complete University Guide 2018 and The Guardian University Guide 2018), and we have a proud tradition of supporting students and equipping them with everything they need to thrive in the workplace. 94.6% of our students find employment or go on to further study within the first six months after graduating. Supported by exponential growth over the past five years, thousands of new jobs have been created, with the industry set to expand significantly over the coming decade. With our graphic design, advertising and illustration degree courses you can pursue a career path in a variety of industries, including: – PR and communications – Publishing – Film – Music – Fashion – Media production – Web design – Marketing. In these fields, the demand for creative skills is high. While studying with us, you’ll be able to apply your vision to exciting live projects and access industry-led workshops as well as lectures from speakers representing the diverse industry.
With our close connections to many big names such as the Association of Illustrators, Penguin Books, Victoria and Albert Museum, Eye Magazine, news publishers like MOJO Magazine and the BBC and agencies such as Wieden+Kennedy, Mother, Bartle Bogle Hegarty and Ogilvy & Mather to name but a few, UCA students learn first-hand from trained professionals and have access to rewarding work placements. You could go on to work as a graphic designer, publisher, web designer, illustrator, animator, set designer, art director, typographer, copywriter, educator, printmaker, or one of many other creative roles where your degree will be invaluable. You’ll have the knowledge to pursue freelancing and bring your skills to small businesses as well as agencies, working on design projects from website re-brands through to brochure design, drawing avatars, creating book cover art and much more. UCA graduates have been offered positions in the fields of animation, multimedia production, printmaking and digital imaging as well as editorial design, working as graphic designers, app developers, animators, set designers and account managers among a multitude of professions at top agencies and brands, including Harper Collins, Burberry, Boeing, Channel 4 and many others. 7
Sarah Willmott – BA (Hons) Graphic Design UCA Epsom
8
Portfolio advice
What is a portfolio? – A portfolio is a collection of your work that demonstrates a range of skills and creative talent. It’s your opportunity to showcase your individuality, creativity, inspirations and artistic abilities, and is a useful way for us to evaluate your suitability for the course you’ve applied to. It might contain design work, drawings/art projects, photographs, films, sound work, music composition, or examples of creative writing or essays. Think of your portfolio as a statement about your work – it should exhibit your creative journey, thought processes and influences. Don’t be afraid to be bold and appeal to the viewer, keeping their attention and leaving them feeling excited about your creative potential.
Make sure your portfolio is well presented. Remember, our tutors will only have a short amount of time to look through each portfolio, so you need to organise your work intelligently. Generally, we would recommend that you include between 10 and 25 pieces of work in your portfolio, neatly mounted on white or off-white paper in either landscape or portrait format (not a mixture of both). Put some of your most attention-grabbing and interesting work at the front and lead the viewer through your journey by exhibiting pieces of work that showcase a variety of skills, materials, techniques and influences – this might include paintings, drawings, photography, digital pieces, storyboards, animation images or written work. If you include moving image work, we would recommend a maximum of two minutes’ running time. Highlight your favourite pieces too, and indicate what or who inspires you.
What should my portfolio include? –
Find out more –
Your portfolio should feature examples of your research and show the development of your ideas and projects – this should be highly presentable and well organised. It may be useful to arrange your work into themes, styles or chronological order. This will demonstrate good organisational skills and your own artistic awareness.
The course pages at uca.ac.uk provide clear guidance on what we’d like to see in your portfolio for each of our courses. We’ve also put together a set of videos talking you through the process: uca.ac.uk/study/portfolio-advice
It should exhibit your creative journey, thinking processes and individual personality, so we can assess your potential. It’s also important to show both your inspirations and aspirations, as your portfolio should say a lot about you and your creative identity, as well as the course you’re applying to. Documenting the development of your ideas in a sketchbook is a great way to show us how you approached the task of creating your work, allowing us to gain insight into your creative thought processes and approach to your subject, and demonstrating a clear rationale. 9
Graduate profile Tell us a bit about your work. – I’m very interested in science communication, so I studied that for my final major project and got into the topic of asthma and how asthma is very mismanaged in the UK. From my research I ended up developing an asthma management mobile app. There are some key features that it has – one is emergency assistance, so if people are having an asthma attack or you come across a person as a bystander, it shows you the steps that you have to go through and has the option of contact 999 if you need it. There are also medication reminders, and an asthma action plan, too, because asthma is a very personalised disease and everyone’s plan is very varied. It also integrates with doctors and pharmacies as well, so the goal is your doctor will be able to see your trends without you having to you having to bring notes, making your appointments a lot quicker and easier, and more accurate.
10
Rebecca Casselman – BA (Hons) Graphic Communication UCA Farnham, 2017
What’s your plan for the future – what are you going to do next? – I would like to get into the field of science communication and I’m currently looking for a job – I studied for two years in Ottawa in Canada and I transferred here just for the final year, so I did miss the work experience for both those courses, which was a shame.
What did you like about UCA? What drew you here? – I really liked that we were able to focus very much on what each student was interested in so everyone’s project turned out so completely differently. I really like to dive right into a research project and being able to do that alongside doing the surface design enabled me to understand more about the topic I was looking at.
Jenya Steanson – BA (Hons) Graphic Communication UCA Farnham
11
Graduate profile
12
Emma Mills – BA (Hons) Graphic Communication UCA Farnham, 2017
I attended an Open Day with my parents and got a really friendly feel from Farnham. It was very welcoming and I didn’t feel intimidated at all – it felt like a real community, homely with a relaxed yet vibrant and creative atmosphere. I got onto the course through my foundation year at Epsom – I wasn’t originally aware of this option and actually it was a blessing as it was my first choice! That’s what is so great about UCA; they encourage you to keep studying and to keep learning, and the foundation year was a great way for me to find out which avenue to go down. The main aspect I loved about the course was the broadness of work you could produce – I never thought I could create what I have in the past three years. This course encouraged me to try new things as well as embrace my strengths. If you’d told me at the beginning I would design some of the things I’ve made, I wouldn’t have believed you, but that is the beauty of this course and this university – they help you grow into the designer you want to become and they are with you every step of the way. Staff are very helpful – they are encouraging and push you to get the best out of you. This campus is a small one and because of this the tutors and staff know you on a more personal basis. This really helped me, as I was able to speak to them more regularly and they could give more time to me. The studio for this course is very cool and probably the nicest one in the whole campus – it’s spaced out enough for you to work productively but also situated in a way that you are able to go from room to room and see other year groups. It isn’t a very segregated building which I think is why the course has such an upbeat and friendly atmosphere.
I have met some of the most amazing people in the past three years. Everyone, including students (who are now definitely friends for life!), staff and tutors, have really made a difference to my experience here and it’s the best thing about this university – being surrounded by creative people and creative insights, support and encouragement. I have definitely changed since studying at UCA, in many ways I never thought I could. When I began my academic and creative studies into this industry I thought everything was very black and white –that if you study fine art then you will become a fine artist, or if you study graphics you will only create digital outcomes. However, this experience has changed my mindset completely, after UCA and this campus has taught me that there is so much more to learn out there and so many different avenues I can potentially go down. I am currently looking for full-time, permanent employment and really looking forward to immersing myself in the industry. Later on in life I hope to further my studies and do a PhD, but for the time being I am looking forward to gaining a lot more experience in the creative community. I have absolutely loved being at UCA and couldn’t have asked for better friends and tutors to help me through it. If you’re planning on joining a creative community that really appreciates you, producing great work which you never thought you could, progressing your communication skills in a friendly and fun environment as well as working really hard to meet the best of your potential, then UCA is definitely the place for you.
13
Course leaders Jane Cradock-Watson – BA (Hons) Illustration, MA Illustration UCA Farnham Jane Cradock-Watson leads our BA (Hons) and MA Illustration degrees at UCA Farnham. Prior to this, Jane was Associate Dean for our School of Media and Culture. Jane has worked successfully as an illustrator since graduating. She has worked on commissions from a wide range of clients in the areas of editorial illustration, packaging design, publishing, TV and advertising. Her specialist fields include packaging and non-fiction publishing.
14
Jane’s personal research focuses on the production of limited edition hand-made artists’ books. Much of her work uses photography and printmaking. She has exhibited regularly since 2009. Several of Jane’s books are in major national and international collections, such as the Tate Britain, the Victoria and Albert Museum and
the Yale collection of British Art. The selection of paper and material of the book, its texture and physical properties, are a primary consideration in her work. The metaphor of the garden and nature have been a major theme in the creation of her books, providing an intimate and sensory experience with nature, and engaging the audience in reflecting on the garden as a metaphor for life. This explores the transience of perfection, order and disorder, and the tensions between the cultivated and the wild which exist within it. The initial ideas for Jane’s work come from considered observation, supported by research through reading. Reading, both fictional and theoretical, initially supports the work, which is then developed visually through recording and structural experimentation. From this point, the development is often organic and intuitive, to develop her underlying narrative and visual poems.
Mark Hudson – BA (Hons) Graphic Design UCA Epsom Mark is wholeheartedly committed to design pedagogy – he has shaped and led Graphic Design courses in and around London for the last twenty years, alongside a thriving graphic arts practice. He strongly believes that graphic designers have a responsibility to make significant contributions to public life as thinkers and shapers of our shared future. He has taught and lectured internationally, including workshops in Copenhagen, Ghent, Hamburg and Orleans, and was awarded First Prize in the MacMillan Prize for Children’s Books. Initially trained as an Oxford historian, Mark looks to bring longer perspectives and critical analysis to modern design settings. Based in shared design studios in London’s Brunswick Centre, his graphic work consists of thoughtful visual imagery used in a wide range of settings, extending out
far beyond traditional illustration, into exhibition graphics, public art, historical visual consultancy, and book arts and manufacture. In addition, his wider professional design interests range across the visual spectrum from applied drawing and printmaking, to children’s books via digital domains, artisan design and print ephemera. He looks to promote a graphic ideology that is collaborative and does not accept constraints or boundaries to the situating of graphic design as a practice. His current research interests lie in pictorial graphics, schematic visual systems, the history of visual culture and taste in the face of change. See Mark’s work at markhudson.co
Tom Northey – BA (Hons) Graphic Communication UCA Farnham Tom is originally a graduate of one of UCA’s founder colleges, the Surrey Institute of Art and Design (SIAD). For the past fifteen years, Tom has worked for a variety of sectors within the design industry. During his time in the design industry, Tom has worked with some household names including British Airways, Innocent Drinks and Orange. Tom is the founder of KöderBüro, working for clients in the Middle East and Europe. Since gaining his BA from SIAD, Tom has gone on to receive an MA in Graphic Design from the London College of Communication, is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, has a PGCert in Learning and Teaching, is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and has won seven D&AD (Design and Art Direction) Awards. Former students of Tom’s have gone on to work at companies such as SEA Design, Burberrys, Electronic Arts, BBC & Harper Collins.
Hugh Harwood – BA (Hons) Illustration & Animation, BA (Hons) Graphic Design: Visual Communications UCA Canterbury Hugh Harwood leads our BA (Hons) Illustration & Animation and BA (Hons) Graphic Design: Visual Communications courses at UCA Canterbury. Hugh is a lens-based artist, preoccupied with the landscape and issues of place. Much of his individual practice is focused upon issues of history and time, cycle and change within the environment. He’s also developed many socially engaged, collaborative art projects with a diverse range of people – particularly within a health context – that explore, through various media, issues of memory and identity.
David Anderson – BA (Hons) Advertising UCA Farnham David Anderson leads our BA (Hons) Advertising degree at UCA Farnham. David is a successful creative and strategic thinker, combining a highly renowned academic reputation with extensive industry experience. A graduate of the Glasgow School of Art and the University of Huddersfield, he’s also been awarded an MA Writing for Performance and Publication from the University of Leeds and is the External Examiner for MA, MDes and BA courses in the UK. David’s impressive CV includes a number of years as Creative Director and Art Director, following on from his success as a Graphic Designer. During his career in the advertising industry, David was mentored by Ogilvy & Mather and worked for several influential agencies. Prior to joining UCA, David spent 19 years at Leeds College of Art developing and leading a portfolio of courses in both graphic design and advertising. Alongside his role in the School of Communication Design, David is also a short story writer and a published playwright.
15
Jack Gaisford – BA (Hons) Graphic Design: Visual Communications UCA Canterbury
16
17
We create
sp 18
Illustration studios UCA Farnham
Canterbury –
Epsom –
UCA Canterbury provides purpose-built studios, workshops and lecture theatres for nearly 1,000 students studying fine art, graphics, illustration and animation, architecture and interiors.
UCA Epsom is renowned as a major centre for fashion, fashion journalism and graphic design. Our facilities provide students with the right ingredients for successful study including modern IT facilities, a media store, inspiring teaching areas, gallery space, a library, supportive teaching staff and a programme of guest speakers.
Facilities include: – Access to a dedicated studio space equipped with both Macs and PCs, programmed with the latest industrystandard, specialist software – Fully-equipped photographic studios with darkrooms, digital processing and printing facilities – Print and screen printing facilities – Specialist processing equipment – Animation and stop motion bays.
space
Facilities include: – Dedicated studio space equipped with both Macs and PCs, programmed with the latest industry-standard, specialist software – Fully-equipped photographic studios with darkrooms, digital processing and finishing facilities and full industrystandard lighting rigs – Laser cutter and desktop 3D printer.
Farnham – UCA Farnham has extensive purpose-built facilities for over 2,000 students studying a wide range of creative arts subject areas including film, animation, graphics, illustration, fine art, photography, textiles, journalism and advertising. Facilities include: – Access to a dedicated studio space equipped with both Macs and PCs, programmed with the latest industrystandard, specialist software – Fully-equipped photographic studios with darkrooms, digital processing and finishing facilities and full industrystandard lighting rigs. Please note, access to each campus and its resources can sometimes depend on the campus you choose to study at (for example, if you study at one campus, you may be using the facilities at that campus but not always at others – this depends on your course).
19
Next steps Gulem Ezer & Stela Jonikaite – BA (Hons) Advertising UCA Farnham
20
How to apply –
Contact us –
The course you choose determines how you apply – this could be through UCAS (the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) or directly to UCA.
If you’ve got any queries regarding the admissions process or your application, please contact the relevant admissions team:
uca.ac.uk/study/how-to-apply ucas.com/apply
UK/EU admissions: T: +44 (0)1252 892 960 E: admissions@uca.ac.uk International admissions: T: +44 (0)1252 892 785 E: internationaladmissions@uca.ac.uk
Connect with us – @UniCreativeArts facebook.com/ucreativearts @unicreativearts @unicreativearts youtube.com/unicreativearts unicreativearts.tumblr.com blog.uca.ac.uk social.uca.ac.uk #WeCreate Disclaimer – The information in this brochure is believed to be correct at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to introduce changes to the information given including the addition, withdrawal, relocation or restructuring of any programmes. The information in this brochure is subject to change and does not form part of any contract between UCA and the student and his/ her sponsor. For up-to-date and more detailed information on any of our courses and studying at UCA, please go to: uca.ac.uk
21
uca.ac.uk
22