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GRADING
Grades A through F may be awarded. (For details, see "What You Should
Know About Grades" on pp. 27-30 of your Student Handbook.) Failure to
satisfy all
requirements of the course results in F or, in certain cases, I
(incomplete). Your grade will
be calculated on the basis of a course project (30%), a final exam (30%),
a midterm exam (20%), and two reading quizzes (10% each). On-time
attendance
at every class session is expected. Please see pages 12-13 of your Student
Handbook for NYCCT policy on attendance and absences.
REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE COURSE PROJECT
In this assignment, which counts for 30% of your final grade, you will have an opportunity to conceive, plan, and execute a personal project by using some of the basic tools of graphic communications.
The assignment has three parts: two that are primary visual, one that is the written component. You are to design and create the visuals on the computer with the help of any software application(s) you wish. Here is what to submit.
1. Your branding statement. Each of us has a brand—a set of personal characteristics that makes us unique. Your task in this part of the assignment is to express your brand using typography, color, imagery, layout, and text. Your branding statement consists of:
• a logo design for your name. You can use clip art and standard fonts, or you can create a design from scratch. Either way, your logo must effectively communicate your "brand equities": the personality traits, talents, quirks, etc., that make you you.
• a tagline. Write a branding statement or slogan that says in words what your logo says in the way it looks. Keep your branding statement short: five or six words, maximum.
• a self-portrait. You are the product behind the brand—what does the product look like? The image could be realistic, but it doesn't have to be. Use an unedited photo, a Photoshopped image, a digital painting or sketch, or a collage of images—whatever best conveys your visual brand identity.
• a layout. Your logo, tagline, and self-portrait have to be contained in a format of some kind. It could be the cover of a magazine or a book, a page in a brochure, the front or the back panel of a package, a store poster, a bus or a building wrap—look around you for other possibilities. Pick a layout and make it work for your branding statement.
2. Visual quotations. When they are imaginatively used, type and imagery can powerfully reinforce the emotional impact or the intellectual content of the words that they accompany. For this part of the project, begin by selecting a favorite quotation from any source: a book, a song, a poem, a film, a friend, or a relative. Then, come up with two different ways to highlight what the quote expresses by styling and manipulating the type. You can add images if you wish, but most of the effect should be achieved by your original treatment of the typography. The instructor will present examples of visual quotations in class. You can also find specimens at www.designingwithtype.com.
3. Project commentary. Write a report of about 500 words describing what you did, which tools you used, and why you approached the assignment in the way you did. Talk about any problems you encountered and describe what you did to solve them. Be sure to address both the branding statement and the visual quotations.
GENERAL GUIDELINES
• You can create the branding statement and the visual quotations in any software application(s) you wish, but save them as PDFs for submission to the instructor. The written commentary should be submitted as a Word document.
• You can also develop the branding statement and the visual quotations as web pages. If you create web pages, post them where the instructor and other members of the class can access them without a password. Include the links in your written commentary.
• The firm deadline for submitting all parts of the project is the 12th class session on 11-23-10. We'll review examples in sessions 13 and 14.
Reminder: please e-mail your comments and suggestions to
PTHenry@Citytech.cuny.edu
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