Watercooler Workshop: Design Fundamentals 112

Back to Teaching, General Archive

Things we can talk about:

• Presentation, Participation and writing
• Weekly assignment tips. Note that we need input and ideas from you on developing a coherent arc from week 1 to week 6. See "Looking ahead to w 4 5 6 - subject matter for designs" on my course support page under week 1
• Critique tips (jing) This will be covered in the classroom (Fundamentals of Design FND112 UF ) not archived here - We will do a sample Jing Crit and go to http://www.screencast.com to view archives. A grade sheet from Google docs will be open at the same time to show grading procedure
• If there is time: Teaching tips (grade as you go) The use of Google Docs and weekly grade sheets for archiving communication, grades, other important information

NOTE ON NAVIGATING THIS WORKSHOP

We will use this page, my course support page, and one of my online courses for resources, links, examples, tutorials.

presentation, participation

presentation

It is a web environment, so format should be for the web. I use 600 x 800 72 DPI as a standard to start, and for stacked images I suggest around 650 wide and as tall as required. To get these results I use week 1 as a testing/learning period and after that incorrectly formatted work receives 0 points unless resubmitted correctly.

I provide a video on how to scan and post Click here for the announcement click here for the tutorial

LABELS.

Labels in my course are placed lower right, around 11 pixel sans serif OFF the image, like you would see in any publication. Here is what I post as an announcement, below.

Easy labels -
Illustrator is a pain when it comes to 'save for web', labeling. Here's what I do
Export from illustrator as a .psd (photoshop) file
Open the .psd file in Photoshop
Go to image/image size and make sure it is 72 dpi and around the size you want
Go to Image/mode and make sure it is RGB, not CMYK (the default Illus format)
Go to image/canvas size and select the top center square in the 9 square grid, and then add about 50 or 75 pixels of canvas...make sure the background color is set to white
Select the text tool, helvetica 11 pixel for example
Label with title, name, year, and 'save for web' at high quality jpg

I am considering providing a template, such as this for continuity and development of good presentation standards.

Examples of student work reflecting good presentation, writing posted along with the attachment,and labeling, can be seen at http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm

(Stephanie Cone's Week 1 equal positive and negative assignment has both labeling and written description - it's a good example.)

participation and writing

I post the following in the week 1 announcements:

Hi Class (:

What I need from you in this course - a written response for every image posted...
Before I can critique/grade your work I need to know more about your intent - For example in Week 4 assignment 3, describe the space - describe the volume - is it volumetric space without an object? A flat space with a volumetric object?
Let me know more of what is going on - clarify -
Otherwise I am left on my own and my conclusions may not be the same as yours -
For example, in week 4, What I am finding are what look like flat spaces (not deep) with flat or rather ambiguous objects that are open to interpretation...and if you don't let the audience know exactly what is happening then your work may be open to the incorrect conclusion.
In your written description you may be able to convince me of something I am not seeing right away. So give it a shot - and do this for ALL the assignments. Don't just post "here is my assignment"....include description of process and intent. A few minutes can equate to a few more points! (:

And Participation

Don't wait until day 7 to participate - sometimes ALL the crits and writing is done by a student on day 7, all within a few minutes (you can see the time stamp).
What is wrong with Day 7 participation? Few will view it, or respond to it since they have moved on to the following week. How can that contribute to communication, participation, a conversation and learning experience? It will ultimately cost you points - I highly recommend commenting a day or two after the assignment is due, and frequently during the week so the class dynamic is maintained and people can appreciate your input! These can be easy points, taking only a few minutes, gaining you 10, 20 points a week.

Participation. re-read the reqs on this as it is the most frequent point loss - Use design terminology and although communiques should be friendly/collegial keep it professional and objective - My best friends in college were the ones who were honest with me about my work - so don't hesitate to provide a fresh set of eyes for someone's design. And "critical" is different than "negative" - Never be negative. Also - if you like something and don't have anything critical to say - then expand upon WHY you like it, or why it works so well as a design or artwork.

Remember

'good job' and 'nice work' etc don't count as participation. I don't count words usually but I can 'eyeball' quantity and quality.

Pretend you are a boss or friend or art director commenting on something being shown to you - it can be casual and friendly but should be insightful - show us you have looked at the work - discuss line shape form texture space scale form movement depth overlapping etc...why you like something, what works, and what could be improved. Onground I require two positive comments and two critical (not negative) comments.

While we are on the subject of announcements, here is what my course looks like

And this is what my Important Information Announcement looks like:

Important Information - Please Read! Your grade depends upon it! (:

 

Weekly assignment tips

More at my course support page

Week 1

Assignment3:

Overlapping exercise: This is difficult for a week 1 assignment since it involves inverted intersections and can really only be done in Illustrator easily.

What I post:

Note 1: The PDF attached here has a step by step procedure in Illustrator that usually guarantees a good grade for the assignment (:

Note 2: The important thing here is to create interesting shapes to manipulate. Please do not limit yourself to the simple rectangles in the assignment description example. You can use Photoshop or Illustrator, any program you feel comfortable with (although as mentioned, the Illustrator tutorial goes step by step). There is a link to tutorials above in the assignment description. In Photoshop (the program I use most) I usually create the 2 shapes in different layers and then invert the background (bg) or shape 1 or 2...in different combos. But this is more complicated than the step by step procedure in the pdf. Important: please post following course format reqs - around 600 x 800 pixels, 72 dpi. Examples can be viewed at week 1 http://jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm
I personally appreciate original shapes more than cliches. Push yourself during this course on all assignments. Stretch to a point almost beyond your capabilities.

Note on labeling: All work has to be labeled. Labeling during the course should be at the bottom of the canvas, OFF the image, off to one side, small, and discreet, just as you would see in a magazine or catalog. Verdana or Helvetica are good choices, 10 or 12 pixel for size, dark gray is a good start as well. Let me know if you have any questions (: JP

Assignment 4

What I post: Have fun with this - be creative - show us why you are in a design school (:

Check out newer work under the assignment heading at http://jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm

older examples, still worth analyzing:
crystal.jpg
NawazKathryn.jpg
glorialyons5.jpg
jennaltman5.jpg
Lydiaking.jpg

Let me know if you have any questions (: JP

Assignment 5:

what I post:

No .docs or PDFs please - post directly to the threads -150 - 200 words per crit is a good guideline. Use objective, analytical language and design terminology. You can go here http://jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinesupport.htm and scroll down to "critique and analysis" for more info on crits.

GUIDELINES ON WRITING AN EFFECTIVE AND CONSTRUCTIVE CRITIQUE:

On your critique responses, the questions given in the thread are not just a laundry list of items that need to be answered. They are meant to guide you in your responses somewhat, but please expand on them with your own thoughts and opinions concerning the work you are reviewing. Your analysis should include the topics covered in the questions, but should go deeper into the work as well. Here are some tips to help guide you through your critique responses each week:

• Start by describing the work - Make a list of all the things you see in the work without making any kind of judgment about the work. It is important to get a careful, non-judgmental observation before beginning your analysis. This step should simply be a description of what you see in the design.
• Continue by analyzing the work - Pay close attention to what design principles have been used. How is the composition organized using rhythm, balance, movement, proportion, variety, emphasis, and unity? This step should be a description of what you see in the design conceptually and should address the design topics for the week.
• Then begin interpreting the work - Explain or tell the meaning or mood of the work. What is your personal reaction to this design? How does it make you feel? What did you learn from the design? Think creatively and imaginatively at this stage. Base your interpretation on your observations in the first two steps.
• Conclude with your judgment of the work - Decide in what ways the work is successful or how it could be improved. Base judgments on your observations of the work and its success in applying the appropriate design principles towards its intended function. It is important during this step to be constructive and phrase your comments in a respectful manner. Any criticism needs to be balanced both with suggestions for improvement and other positive observations. That way everyone can improve their work as we progress.
• Critiquing is a process that serves both the person receiving the comments as well as the person making the comments. Those receiving the comments get valuable insight into how their work is viewed by their peers. In addition, the person making the comments learns how to think critically about another’s work, which translates into the ability to think more critically about his or her own work. So the critique process is an important element of this course and should be given the appropriate level of thought and consideration.

Week 2

DQ

Note: I tweak the wording of the DQ to make it 'better'. In this week students go out and find three examples of different kinds of symmetry. Here are the stacking instructions I include with the assignment to eliminate multiple posts:

When grouping thumbs and roughs, putting images together for one post:

In Photoshop:

1. create a canvas that is 800 wide, 3000 pixels high as a starting point - you can crop when done or add canvas as you go. Resolution 72 dpi.
2. open your scans and images you want to group
3. using the move tool, drag them from their canvas onto the new canvas
4. Select the image you want to resize, use the transform tool (holding down the shift key to maintain proportions) to resize. NEVER RESIZE UP - only down - if you resize an image larger it will become blurry.

Note: each image you have dragged onto the canvas will be on its own layer. And make sure the layers are flattened on the image you want to drag, or you may end up selecting only one part of the image.

An example is included below - you can see my canvas ended up being 650 x 1500. I used helvetica 11. I also used guides to make sure my margins were equal. Just for the sake of the example I used two landscape (horizontal) format images and one portrait (vertical) format.

Related note - you may find the following short tutorial helpful as well for grouping images: http://www.screencast.com/t/b4H6SGKniGE

Assignment 2: Design Exercise

I demand that a small superunit be included. Why? Have you ever sat there trying to figure out what part of the design is the super unit?

Thisis what I post under the assignment description:

Important!

1. I have eliminated the restriction as to how many times you can dupe the super unit, and it doesn't need to be composed of same sized circles - they can be different sizes.
2. I have added dilation as something you can use in the design

Requirements! (:

Please place a small image of your super unit form in a corner of the design so we know what you used.

One way to do this in Photoshop is to:

1. create your superunit form
2. do 'image duplicate' so another canvas pops up with the same design
3. flatten that image
4. drag that image back to your master canvas
5. do 'control T', and adjust the handles that appear on the corners down to the size you want, making sure you are holding the shift key to maintain proportions.

examples: onlinedesign.htm and go to week II...

On my website will see examples of this exercise and excellent labeling.

Note that on Harlon McCoy's he also posted a description of his process and other additional written information on the design to give us more information than just "here is my assignment".

This is extremely important, as it helps us critique and understand your work. Without it, we fly blind, and you are at the mercy of our subjective judgments (:

Thanks!

Assignment 3: Formal Design

What I post:

Note: The above examples may not be "A" work - put some thought and time into it! (:

Student work: go to http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm and go to week II...

You will see good examples of this exercise along with labeling.

Make sure this is symmetrical and formal. Next week we will do asymmetrical and informal. Know the difference! (:

Thanks!

Week 3

Dq: My version

Discuss/explain how you can utilize contrast in your designs. How do you retain an overall sense of balance with contrast?
Then...
Find an example of an artwork from the site below that supports your conclusions and observations, download it, resize and repost for us in our web format of 72 dpi, no more than 800 pixels wide, and describe its use of contrast and balance in the composition.
There are a number of artworks from different time periods at http://www.artcyclopedia.com/

So...to summarize:
the written component will be:
1. How to utilize contrast in designs
2. How to balance contrast in designs
3. A specific analysis of contrast and balance used in an artwork posted as attachment

(and under the assignment description)

In addition (:
Consider contrast in values (light and dark), as well as perhaps line weights, size and scale, saturation, etc.

This would be an opportunity to analyze an old masters painting, a contemporary artwork, a favorite design, or your own work.

FYI: The standard artist studied in school for value and chiaroscuro is Caravaggio. A good link for value is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiaroscuro

Once you have considered the basic visual elements and principles of design, you might even want to consider contrast in ideas. For example, on my site for our course I have an ad that has a photo of a shark (big, menacing, tough) with the word "fragile" placed over it.

150 - 200 words min, grammar, spelling all count (:

Gradation

What I include:

If you go to http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm and scroll down to week 3/six step gradation, you will see some student work demonstrating morphing/transition/shape evolution.

BTW, The example above in the assignment description using two basic built in shapes would be a B grade, not an A. Let's work on stretching our art and design skills (:

Note that there are 2 ways to do this - by hand...and of course the time saving technique described in the tutorial using the blend tool in illustrator -

Here are written instructions you can print out and use as well as just following the tutorial.

Procedure One:

To Blend

1. Create your two shapes in illustrator.
2. Select them both, and Group them using Object/Group
3. Apply a Blend using Object/Blend/Make (you can use Blend/Options to set the number of steps).
4. Separate the objects using Object/Blend/Expand
5. Arrange each object separately using the Direct Selection Tool (the white arrow top right on the tool bar).

Tips: It works best with objects that have a fill.
You can change the number of steps after you have made the Blend, but before your Expand it.

As usual - at this point I would export as a psd and open in Photoshop to crop and label
------------------------
Procedure Two:

Another set of instructions for those of you who want to push the design a little bit:

Creating and releasing blends

You create blends in Illustrator by clicking objects or anchor points with the Blend tool, or by selecting objects or anchor points and using the Make Blend command. The Make Blend command creates intermediate objects between the selected objects.

Objects are blended relative to either their center points or to selected anchor points. You can also select two or more anchor points from which to blend by clicking anchor points with the Blend tool. By selecting different anchor points on the objects, you can create the effect of rotating the blend from a specific point in one object to a selected point in the next.

Once you create a blend between objects, the blended objects are treated as one object. If you move one of the original objects, or edit the original object's anchor points, the blend changes accordingly. In addition, the new objects blended between the original objects don't have their own anchor points. You can release or expand the blend. Releasing a blend removes the new blended objects and restores the original objects. Expanding a blend enables you to divide the blend into distinct objects, which you can edit individually like any object and expand further.

To blend multiple objects with the Blend tool:

Select the Blend tool.

Do one of the following:

To blend in sequential order with no rotation, click anywhere on each object, but avoid anchor points.

To blend to a specific anchor point on an object, click the anchor point with the Blend tool. When the pointer is over an anchor point, the pointer changes from a white square to transparent with a black dot in its center.

To blend open paths, select an endpoint on each path.

When you are finished adding objects to the blend, click the Blend tool in the toolbox.

To blend multiple objects with the Make Blend command:

1. Select the objects.
2. Choose Object > Blend > Make.

To set blending options:

To change an existing blend, select the blended object.

Choose Object > Blend > Blend Options.

Select from the following options in the Spacing menu:

Smooth Color to let Illustrator auto calculate the number of steps for the blends. If objects are filled or stroked with different colors, the steps are calculated to provide the optimum number of steps for a smooth color transition. If the objects contain identical colors, or if they contain gradients or patterns, the number of steps is based on the longest distance between the bounding box edges of the two objects.

Specified Steps to control the number of steps between the start and end of the blend.

Specified Distance to control the distance between the steps in the blend. The distance specified is measured from the edge of one object to the corresponding edge on the next object (for example, from the rightmost edge of one object to the rightmost edge of the next).

Select from the following options:

Align to Page to orient the blend perpendicular to the x axis of the page.

Align to Path to orient the blend perpendicular to the path.

To release a blended object:

1. Select the blended object.
2. Choose Object > Blend > Release.

To expand a blend into distinct objects:

Choose Object > Blend > Expand.

Please note: After expanding a blend, the resulting pieces will be grouped with one another so they will need to be ungrouped before you they can be individually manipulated. With the grouped forms selected, go to the Object menu and select Ungroup. The new pieces can now be selected and adjusted individually.

Informal Designs

(under the assignment description)

Some of the examples above aren't that asymmetrical, and don't reflect much time or involvement. Please push scale and imbalance! Check out the links below for better examples:

Student Work: http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm and scroll to Week 3/informal Design

(Note Stephanie Krell's written component)

Week 4

Assignment 2: Texture

This assignment is problematic - how do you know when a student has pushed and pulled to get a unique texture or just used a quick one filter solution?

The assignment needs to be changed, perhaps to develop a composition that has elements with different textures?

In the meantime, this is what I post under the assignment description:

Go to http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm and scroll down to week 4 / Texture and review the work in the student galleries for ideas and inspiration (:

Remember - a simple filter application will earn you few points. I have seen a million liquify filter apps - How hard is it to open ANY image and apply liquify, and think you are done? If you can manipulate that image further, then go for it...otherwise, push yourself a little and make it challenging.

Required:

1. A written description of your process posted along with the image. You may want to take notes as you work.
2. All labels must be OFF the design, lower right corner, discreet, small. This is industry standard (see any magazine with images and artwork for reference)

Examples of this assignment and description of process are on my website at the link posted above - see the work of student William James and
Jenna Dickes - they included a paragraph of their process.

The texture should be TACTILE - so be prepared to discuss the nature of the texture you have created. You should feel as if you can reach out and touch it (:

Finally - note how the assignment specifies 'field' of texture. This means something like a swatch of fabric. Some students go to the next level and apply the texture to an object. When this is done correctly it works really well to illustrate texture. When it is done poorly it becomes mere decoration. When in doubt go with the field of texture - or do what some students have done and include the fields of texture as thumbs above an illustration that incorporates the textures.

Assignment 3: Depth and Volume

We can use gray! Volume! Shading! (:

We have been waiting for an opportunity to branch out from black and white - so be sure to take advantage of this and use a full range of values.

Go here http://www.jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm and scroll to Week 4 / Depth and Volume to view student galleries for ideas and inspiration (:

Note: The examples above in the assignment description wouldn't be A's.

Here is an example of an abstraction using values, both flat and volumetric from my art archive, by Akira Arita:

akira_arita2.jpg

There are others there as well to look at and analyze in the context of this assignment.

Clues and tips:

1. Overlapping creates space.
2. Dark to light and large to small (atmospheric perspective, scale) creates depth (think of mountains in the distance)
3. Volume = light source, dark to light, and differently shaded planes (3d instead of 2d)

Remember - label in the lower right corner, OFF the image (just add 50 pixels of canvas to the bottom of your creation when done and label there)
and include some sort of description of process along with the work - no 'here is my assignment' posts, please! (:

J

Week 5

This is where the transition gets difficult - the entire course we have been doing exercises and guided designs - and now the student needs to suddenly come up with a proposal and a design. I think somehow we need to ease into this from week 1, probably by changing the existing DQs to proposal writing and looking at contemporary design so ideas can be fleshed out before week 5.

Here is how I help them in the meantiime:

Class -

You are expected to come up with your own ideas here for a final project - suggestions:

No brochures, logos, webpage layouts or other graphic designs please (unless you get my approval first) why?
we haven't covered typography or layout yet - and the insertion of these elements all of a sudden could overshadow the things we have been focusing on.

Let's keep it abstract, illustrative, like the assignments we have been making. Or if you DO have an idea like an interior you want to design, or something other than an abstract design, then run it by me first for an OK.

Having said that, the description above needs some clarification or at least an example. Here goes - something I might write if I were taking the course - and please do not copy this for YOUR statement.

"My goal is to produce an abstract design that displays a comprehensive understanding of the design and color principles covered in class. I would like to produce a portfolio piece I can use later on in my program when I take Portfolio Development. To do this I will work at 300 dpi and then post a reduced and correctly formatted image to the threads.

My initial idea is to create an organic (versus geometric) design. I will scan in objects I have found outside at high resolutions of up to 1200 dpi and then drag them over to the canvas....(I could continue with my process here)

Thumbnails will be posted in the next assignment but attached (theoretically) is a sketch or prelim layout of my idea.

(here I could talk about framal reference, color, use of scale, what kind of experience I want the viewer to have)

Issues and potential problems? (here I could talk about time, tech issues, having to remain flexible to changes as they develop)"
-----------

Does that give you all something to think about?

As you can see, this could easily be 5 paragraphs, several hundred words (:

One of the most valuable things you could do would be to look at some finals already executed by previous students - analyze them, read the statements, look at the thumbnails, roughs, and final versions to get a feel for what can be done here.

Go to http://jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign.htm#five and look at work by Jason Ruvo, Maria Mitchell, Denise Wynn (and there are others as well). I have included their proposals, entire projects from start to finish, and final statements.

Let me know if you have any questions (:

Assignment 2: Thumbs

This is where the legwork in developing good presentation skills pays off. Here is what I post:

Class (:

Combine the thumbs onto one canvas and post to the threads. This does not mean you have to work small when creating the thumbs - you can work full size, and when finished, drag the flattened image onto a canvas where you will reduce it, and combine it with the other thumbs.

For example, in this link thumbs.jpg you see four 600 x 800 compositions dragged onto another 600 x 800 composition and re-sized to fit

Also - these thumbs need to be accompanied by a written description of what we are looking at, and any other information that might be helpful to us, for example descriptions of your thought and design process, as well as the meat of the original proposal.
Just looking at an image without any sort of context gives us little background on what the image is supposed to be doing -
My comments will vary depending on whether I am commenting on a tattoo design, a logo, a textile design, an abstract fine art piece, a web design layout.
So the less info you give us, the less accurate and informative our comments will be.

I have given you links to student work in A1. There are examples there as well.

Let me know if you have any questions (:

JP

In addition to the above I post a tutorial done using Jing:

Here is a short Jing tutorial on placing four full scale images onto a canvas for posting
http://www.screencast.com/t/b4H6SGKniGE

Assignment 3: Color studies

This begs for a Jing tutorial!

What I post:

Required!

As in the last project, I want the four interpretations, regardless of original size, placed on one canvas for us to look at.

In addition, I want a small color wheel placed next to each design with a marker showing which colors were used.

example:

harlanmccoyw5_3.jpg
Cann_Brenda_Wk5_A3.jpg
danielkrellw5.gif

and many others at onlinedesign.htm under week 5.

the color wheel can be dragged onto the canvas, resized, and copied four times and placed next to the design.

When in doubt, go by this example - No color wheels on the designs, please! http://jeffprentice.net/teachf/onlinedesign/colorthumbs.gif

Note how I have used guides to place things on the canvas, keeping the elements aligned - what you see here is a screenshot - when exported as a gif or jpg these won't show up.

Here is the color wheel you have to use (no CMYK wheels please!):

colorwheel.jpg

Careful study of the following may save you time and gain points -

jruvo_proposaltofinal.jpg
mariamitchell.jpg

Note that this week we cover color schemes - as presented in the lecture and textbook. Color schemes include

Achromatic
Monochromatic
Analogous
Warm
Cool
Complementary
Neutral

From the book:

split complementary
triadic

And for good measure - look up a tetradic color scheme (:

We can't have total anarchy (at this point anyways) where you just select colors you like, mark them on the wheel, and post. I would limit your color choices to the above scheme list, or if you deviate it needs to be accompanied by a description of the selected scheme referencing tonality, discord, hue relationship...other elements discussed in the text. Always be able to back up your decisions so you're not left with "well, I just kinda liked that color" (:

Also - these thumbs need to be accompanied by a written description of what we are looking at, and any other information that might be helpful to us, for example descriptions of your thought and design process, as well as the meat of the original proposal.
Just looking at an image without any sort of context gives us little background on what the image is supposed to be doing -
My comments will vary depending on whether I am commenting on a tattoo design, a logo, a textile design, an abstract fine art piece, a web design layout.
So the less info you give us, the less accurate and informative our comments will be.

Let me know if you have any questions (:

JP

Week 6

Final

For some reason the statement is separate from the final - so I cut them some slack as you can see below

Class (:

Make sure this is 72 dpi, in the correct format - you may have been working at higher resolution for a print piece, so double check please, before posting.

You can see 2 excellent examples of the entire process, including the final here:

jruvo_proposaltofinal.jpg
mariamitchell.jpg

Important: Please post a written component here - the original proposal or a description of your process, thoughts, descriptions of the final. NOTE: This may be almost exactly what you post for your artist statement (assignment 2). That is OK - But the reasoning here is that when you present work to a client or team they want to hear some background, some of your ideas driving the work, information on how you accomplished the piece etc. SO it IS good training and contributes to your knowledge base.

This assignment was no different than a project you would be doing for a client or your employer - at the end, in the end - we ALWAYS want a complete and comprehensive summary. Think about it. If you don't, and the guy next to you does...who has the edge? If you do this part as described here, you will be on your way to fulfilling assignment 2: artist statement.

And don't forget TWO participation posts required for this! (: