Tasks Due from Last Week

  • Research Project Round 1 and Comments
  • Research Presentation Feedback Due
  • Writing Portfolio Due
  • What did you learn? Grade Yourself Survey
  • Week 14 Agenda Checklist

This Week’s Topics

Wrap Up

Congratulations on your accomplishments this semester!

Take a moment to look back at all the work you’ve completed this semester in this course (and others). Even if there were things you wish you could have changed or improved upon, I hope you will feel good about your accomplishments and learn from your disappointments.

In this course, we looked at the formative theories that help us better understand the “how” of visual communication by exploring the critical theories that may explain the “why” within historical, cultural, and social contexts. When we look at philosophical, ethical, political, and aesthetic questions in the field of design, our ability to think creatively and critically expands.

Through this critical practice, my goal for you by the end of this course is to start to include the question “why” within your own design practice and begin to see how your own aesthetic influences connect to historical lineages in the field of design. And also to see how important your voice is (verbal, written, and visual) to the future of the communication design field.

I hope you will be able to apply some of the practices we covered in this course in your design projects here at City Tech and in your future creative career.

Freewrite – ART OF NOTICING (10 min)

This Week’s Prompt – From Ziqi!

Don’t Photograph. DRAW. The smartphone has turned many of us into habitual photographers and everyday documentarians. However… suppose next time you are tempted to capture a snapshot of an appealing or interesting scene, you draw it instead? Many people believe they “can’t draw”… Be heartened that you don’t need to show your drawing to anyone. (and your drawing doesn’t need to replicate what you see) You’ll find that drawing helps you to slow down and enriches what you see.

ART OF NOTICING

Activities

Below, find the information covered in this session.

1. Knowing Your Design History is Crucial to Aesthetic Innovation

Here is one last optional reading which underscores one of the aims of this course: to be an innovative designer, learn how your own aesthetic influences connect to historical lineages in the field of design.

In this essay, Kristen Coogan examines how “Knowing Your Design History is Crucial to Aesthetic Innovation.”

It’s a helpful reminder for designers and design students today: if you borrow from a certain style, it’s important to know where that style came from, as well as the social and cultural contexts that gave that style its rise. 

Kristen Coogan, Eye on Design, June 22nd, 2020
Lorraine Wild's diagram of the wheel of style
Great Wheel of Style, Lorraine Wild, 2000 ©Lorraine Wild

2. Research Project Presentation and Comments

Let’s review your Research Project Presentations in class, and then you can continue to review and add comments up until Dec. 20th.

As part of your final contributions to this class, please add comments to your classmates’ Research Project Presentations posts. View all the posts by navigating to Student Posts > Research Project.

Give at least 1 comment per presentation. Your comment should be supportive AND helpful!

This is NOT a helpful comment:

“Great presentation, I like it”

A helpful comment offers support, a critique of the content, and delivery of the research material, as well as suggestions for improvement:

“Great presentation, NAME. I enjoyed your exploration of XXXX and XXXX. I was especially excited to learn about XXXX and XXXX. I was intrigued by your discussion of XXXX because you presented it by exploring XXXX and contrasted it with XXXX. However, I would have liked to have learned more about XXXXX. Have you considered expanding on XXXX and XXXX? Here are some links about XXXX that I think would be helpful for your future research.”

3. All work due by Dec 20th

Final Milestone!

DUE by Dec 20th: One comment on each of your classmates’ presentations, your Research Journal, all revised Reading Responses, revised Research Papers, and Discussion comments.

4. What did you learn? Grade Survey

What grade do you think you have earned in this course?

If you haven’t completed the Grade Survey, please do ASAP. This survey helps me to align your Learning Plan with the work submitted and the course requirements to determine your final grade. Self-evaluation of your learning experience and effort is critical and will be considered.

Please reach out if you’d like to meet to discuss your final grade!

5. Course Evaluation

  • Please complete this ANONYMOUS survey to help us improve this course and its delivery. Feel free to express both positive and critical thoughts about the course. Share practical thoughts about how the course can be improved for other students. Thank you!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Best wishes for a safe, relaxing break. Please stay in touch!

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