Week 3 Assignment – Learning from the Past, Part 1

Use Adobe InDesign.

Use Adobe InDesign.

Learning Objectives Covered:

• LO 01.01 – Identify and apply how the basic elements support the four principles of design

Career Relevancy

In this assignment, we will learn about using a historical style to visually inform a design piece and see how a designer in the past has worked with the elements and principles of design. This is relevant to your career as a professional graphic designer because knowing how to work with and learn from the historic past of graphic design will once again give you a new place to look for inspiration. In addition, the act of focused observation of a piece provides you with a good learning experience as you analyze how the designer has used both the basic elements of design as well as the four principles of design. For example, seeing how the past designer has positioned elements, used color, and generally composed the layout can teach you how to do it in a manner that might also work. In addition, the act of focused observation of a piece provides you with a good learning experience as you analyze how the designer has positioned elements, used color, and generally composed the layout. The designer can become a mentor to you and you can learn from their expertise. As a professional graphic designer, it is vital that you constantly keep your eyes fresh, keep thinking critically, and keep learning.

Background

One of the benefits of knowing a bit about design history, the work process, and visual creativity of designers who have worked in the past is that you can look to their work for inspiration. When creating work that is inspired by historical styles it is important to note that you do not directly copy the piece (this is plagiarism or stealing). Instead, study and observe the historic piece, interpret the designer’s visual intent and element usage, and then deconstruct elements used and recombine them to make a new piece. The new piece retains the style of the past historic era but becomes something totally new.

When engaged in creating a work that is in the style of or inspired by a historic design piece, it is helpful to pay special attention to how the basic elements of design support the four principles of design. Paying attention to the interplay of the design elements and principles allows you to be inspired by both what is being used and how it is being used to communicate visually.

The basic elements of design are considered to be the building blocks of design. Please see Week 2 Discussion background if you need a reminder.

When creating a work inspired by a past style, answering the following questions can help you fully understand the designer’s style and use of the elements and principles of design so you can remix them in an appropriate manner:

1. How is color being used to show importance or move your eyes through the composition?
2. What type of lines or shapes are being used to visually communicate the message?
3. What sort of alignment is present and how do the elements flow or fit together?
4. What repeated elements does the designer use and how does this bring consistency to the piece?

Answering these questions will help to give you a valuable insight which you will apply to the assignment you will be working on this week because they will help you to explore fully the designer’s work you have chosen.

Prompt

Assignment Overview

Over the next two weeks, we will work on a cumulative project in which you will be designing an event poster in the style of a historic designer. This week, we will conduct visual research and create an initial layout. In week four, we will refine and finalize the poster based on instructor feedback.

Part 1: Mood Board and Poster

This week, we will begin to work on an event poster designed in the style of a historic designer. Please use the following steps as a guide to complete this assignment:

• Download this folder. Inside you will find a list of potential designers along with the required poster content.
• Choose a designer whose work you are inspired by. Note: If you would like to choose a designer who is not listed here, you will need your instructor’s approval.
• Conduct research on your designer. Note how they use the design elements and design principles (consult the Week 2 discussion background if you need a reminder what these things are).
• Create an 11″ x 17″ mood board inspired by their work. Title the mood board with your chosen designer’s name. This mood board should contain color scheme examples, type examples, imagery created by the designer, etc. Use Adobe InDesign.
• Create a first draft of the poster in Adobe Illustrator or Adobe InDesign. Again, consider how you can remix and recombine elements of your chosen designer’s visual style to create something new. Be sure to pay special attention to how the basic elements of design support the four principles of design. Your poster should also be 11″ x 17″.
• Create a Word doc that contains a references list of any sites that you have used to gather information or consulted in your research.
• When you are finished, submit your mood board, your poster, and your reference list as a multi-page PDF.

Assignment Instructions:

• Mood Board Size: 11″ x 17″
• Use designer’s name as mood board title
• Poster Size: 11″ x 17″
• Single letter-sized Word Doc listing website references used for research

Submission Requirements:

• Save your file as DES109_Assignment3_RachelJohnson.pdf
• Submit a multi-page PDF per the instructions above

Best Practices: Always keep all of your native and working files you used to create a project. You will need these when you reach your Portfolio or Capstone course. Continue with this best practice because a client may want to reprint and make changes on an existing project at a later time.

Task Benchmark Examples

The files below are PDFs showing A-level work by fellow students. The examples are provided to illustrate the quality of work needed to get an A on this task. Copying from the samples is considered cheating. Use the examples to inform your plan to create your own work. Provided at the bottom