GD4012 - Practice Based Graphic Design | Ideation & Visual Problem Solving

You’ll learn through a blend of short and longer, practical, more challenging graphic design project briefs designed to develop your Semester One learning in the previous Core Skills and Typography One modules. Briefs in the module will have greater creative scope, complexity, and a more robust technical and conceptual ask. The cognitive processes of visual problem solving and conceptual thinking alongside a greater emphasis on high-quality craft required by the graphic design student will be developed preparing the student for Level 5 study. Your learning will develop through a blend of online, practical studio and workshop-based learning activities, in addition to independent study.



This will be accomplished by building on the various methods and approaches that you already know can be employed as part of the design process, including reflection and presentation. These will provide you with a confident grasp of the fundamentals of graphic design, and the ability to deploy these to high standard of realisation in preparation for creative asks in subsequent years. The learned design process remains the same; importance of multiple ideas, visualisation, storytelling, and narrative, image-making, craft, and layout. At the close of this Semester this module will contribute significantly to students being able to communicate visually in a highly effective way.



You’ll gain further awareness and solidify your ability to understand and use the essential methods and processes (both technical and experiential) underpinning the subject.



You’ll continue to study and work alongside your peers in a studio environment which aims to replicate the creative industry workplace as closely as possible. During the module, work and social bonds that formed last Semester will continue to deepen and new connections with peers will likely be formed. Further student collaboration and group work with your peers in class reflect the working experience of professional designers.



Technical staff will provide you with ongoing support and further specialist workshops throughout the module. You’ll also continue to have access to any technical resources needed in realising your creative project outcomes.

Support and feedback will be provided throughout the module as follows:



Academic staff contact

Module tutors provide you with ongoing academic support / feedback and will always provide an initial overview presentation of the module and its assessment.

Informal staff / student critiques will help you to discuss, understand, develop, and inform design project specifics in a collaborative way.

Formal group critiques, mirroring industry practice allow for detailed project crits, evaluation, and feedback on the development of creative responses.

Project or task requirements are normally introduced via a briefing presentation session, subsequently available for review on Blackboard.

Blackboard will be used to communicate and release all relevant module information, including updates / modifications, attendance, and assessment.



Studio contact time

Delivery is through a blend of lectures, studio-based critiques, practical demonstrations, and independent learning.

Studio Culture is an important aspect of your development as a graphic design student. It also mirrors industry practice.

Independent study hours should be utilised to continue the development and progression of your studio-based practice.



Technical support

Experienced technical support staff will provide demonstration and technical knowledge through timetabled on-line and / or workshop-based sessions.



Peer and independent support

Studio culture and independent study also supports personal development and fosters an appreciation and evaluation of your own and your peer’s working practices.



Course support

You’ll have the support of an exceptional library, access to Adobe Creative Cloud, LinkedIn Learning, a well-stocked Technical Resource Centre, and student support services.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding (KU):
Demonstrate foundational knowledge of core graphic design methods and processes using of critical judgement and practical knowledge to communicate competent graphic design outcomes. (KU 1)

Evidence fundamental knowledge and use of conceptual thinking and reflection alongside a foundational understanding of the graphic design process and associated practical skills. (KU 2)



Intellectual/Professional Skills & Abilities (IPSA):
Document, annotate and reflect on design research, creative ideation, and iterative development and experimentation through layout pads and working journals. (IPSA 1)

Demonstrate awareness of the understanding of the materials, techniques, processes and technology in graphic design practice. (IPSA 2,4)



Personal Value Attributes (PVA):
Demonstrate creative risk-taking, curiosity, and exploration of creative possibilities in studio and self-directed study. (IPSA 3)

Demonstrate the ability to understand and communicate foundational graphic design processes concerning the communication of visual concepts through graphic outcomes. (IPSA 4)

You will be assessed against a creative response to a set brief with consideration given to the creative processes deployed and evidenced and against the assigned learning outcomes highlighted in this module descriptor.

 

The assessment and feedback strategy is:

a. Formative assessment

You will receive verbal formative feedback both individually and in groups throughout the module. This feedback will facilitate the development of your assignment. This feedback will allow you to reflect upon your own work and act upon feedback prior to final submission.



b. Summative assessment

The project brief driving the module will identify the

assessment ask and criteria including submission requirements (deliverables) appropriate to the topic of the project.

 

You will generate throughout your project a physical document we call a Working Journal. This documents your creative journey, understanding and authorship of the creative response. It also demonstrates the originality and provenance of your work, as well as your understanding, through the appropriate application of processes, methodologies and technical/craft skills developed throughout the module.

 

Final project submission is a physical portfolio of work. You may also be asked to complete some form of self-reflection as part of the submission, this could take the form of a written or video rationale/reflection. Whilst this component is not assessed as a deliverable, it may serve to support or inform Personal Values Attributes.

 

This module is exempt from the Anonymous Marking Policy. The nature of working closely and directly with the student in class makes anonymity impractical.



As you move through the programme, the emphasis on attaining a higher level of engagement in each of the learning outcomes will also adapt to reflect your subject advancement to focus on the production of highly sophisticated and professional levels of proficiency in thinking and making.

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This module teaches you the core skills of the graphic designer, specifically ideation, visualisation and visual problem solving; skills that will define your future design career. You’ll do so by engaging in practical studio-based tasks and projects in a fast-paced and supportive environment with staff and technicians who embrace the subject and understand the same design process.



‘Learning by doing’ is the focus for tasks/projects, and within this module and our course this is the mantra by which these core skills are learned. You’ll be introduced to a wide range of processes and techniques for forming and realising your creative graphic design solutions. This blend of intellectual, creative thinking, visualising, experimental, technical, and making skills approach to coursework enables you to build a foundation of experiential and technical knowledge that you can apply to your own future design practice.