The University of the Arts

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked to choose an object and a related letterform or word and, through drawing, develop a composition that is unique, interesting, and complex, then execute that composition, refining details as they do so.

The University of the Arts

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked to design a letterform and, through the manipulation of organic visual language, obscure/destroy that form. Concepts learned include letterform structure, pacing, system analysis and design, composition, and figure/ground relationships.

The University of the Arts

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked to design a simple icon and, through the manipulation of organic visual language, obscure/destroy that form. Concepts learned include letterform structure, pacing, system analysis and design, composition, and figure/ground relationships.

The University of the Arts

GD210 LETTERFORM DESIGN

The analysis and development of letterforms. The norms of weight, proportion, character width, and alphabetic relationships are developed perceptually, by hand. This course stresses the inherent optical relationships that exist in the construction of typefaces derived from the Latin alphabet. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

Using drawing and paining, students first explore the formal proportions of letterforms, developing an understanding of the classical proportions derived from the Latin alphabet. These initial designs then become hand-drawn word-forms which communicate a concept through the formal characteristic of the forms created.

The University of the Arts

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked to design a letterform and, through the manipulation of organic visual language, obscure/destroy that form. Concepts learned include letterform structure, pacing, system analysis and design, composition, and figure/ground relationships.

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked explore organic language using simple black and white. Concepts learned include convex/concave structure, pacing, system analysis and design, composition, and figure/ground relationships.

On the right, students were asked to develop a series of compositions using geometric shapes that demonstrate a systems approach to composition. Concepts learned include visual pacing, system analysis and design, composition, simplicity/complexity, and figure/ground relationships.

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked explore organic language through object translation and composition. Concepts learned include letterform design, formal abstraction, composition, simplicity/complexity, and figure/ground relationships.

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, selfcriticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

For this assignment, students were asked explore properties of color using simple shapes. Concepts of hue, saturation, and lightness were explored using paint and cut paper. Final compositions were created to demonstrate subtle variations in value to create distinctions between the various shapes.

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS

GD213 DESIGN SYSTEMS

An intensive laboratory where the formal aspects of composition, organic and geometric form, color, symbolic drawing, craftsmanship, and processes of conceptualizing are investigated. Assignments are founded on directed goals and playful investigation to train the student in areas of selection, self criticism, set theory, and visual logic. Prerequisite: Completion of the Foundation program, or permission of the instructor by portfolio review and interview.

Fundamental exercises of composition using dots and lines to explore the concepts of order and randomness in a controlled format. Students were then asked to use photographic elements instead as a first step in creating more complex messaging.