Course: COMD 1200 Graphic Design Principles II
Assignment: Design an image that conveys and idea using a graphic representation and a letter.
Background: Many logos we encounter consist of images integrated with letters. These images enhance the text implied by the letter, allowing students to make these connections freely and create visuals that trigger associations in the viewer or end user. After assigning the Icon project for several years, I decided to shift from having students sketch images to having them trace images and combine them with a letter. The selected letter should visually represent an object whose name begins with that letter, and it must do so without any embellishments or additions to the letterform. The goal is for the object to be revealed by subtracting its shape from the letter.
The Lesson Plan: Select a letter from the alphabet and combine it with an outlined image, avoiding any additional elements in the letterform. Simply subtract the image’s shape from the letter.
Student work:
Personal Reflection: This project presents teaching challenges as students sometimes prioritize decoration over the consideration of how the elements interact. In the future, I aim to help students better comprehend the conceptual interplay between the visual and literal elements and how the outlined object interacts with the letterform. Students source their images from an open directory of images, and they should become proficient at redesigning them to fit within the chosen letter’s constraints, selectively excluding unnecessary details.
