Introduction

COURSE OVERVIEW  
CATALOG DESCRIPTION This course covers a variety of topics central to the design of long format publications. Through the development of applied projects, students build on their skills in graphic design and typography and enhance the complex conceptual, formal, and technical skills needed to design publications. Prerequisites for the course are, Art 115 or Art 116, or permission of instructor.

THE COURSE Publication Design is a 3 credit hour studio course and may be used as a graphic design or general art elective. The course covers a range of topics central to the design of long format publications and centers on achieving a strong foundation in the formal, technical and conceptual skills of publication design. In addition to projects, course activities will include readings, lectures on technique, instruction in the use of software and hardware, and critiques and discussions. Specific course content and schedule are subject to change and or modification.

OBJECTIVES
This course focuses on the problem of creating integrated lineal publication designs with attention to both the individual details and the coherent whole. Students will gain experience through applied projects and develop processes to employ type and image fluidly, and sys- tematically. Drawing on your accumulated knowledge, you will apply experimentation, problem-solving, and refinement to these processes, and become able to describe and respond to the various audiences and contexts which the communication solutions must address.

Conceptually, this course will enable you to understand the systematic, sequential, and narrative nature of publication design. You will be expected to respond to specified audiences or to choose appropriate contexts if not specified. You will practice designing layout, typography, and image use that serves and respects text content. To this end, you will be expected to engage in research and the analy- sis of content and meaning. You will be given the opportunity to apply theoretical approaches, and to utilize methods and processes of graphic design problem solving such as ideation, iteration, integration, and synthesis. You will extend meaning through visuals, enriching the reading and interpretation of text by utilizing a range of imagery from symbols to illustrations to graphic devices. In terms of illustra- tions, you will be encouraged to conceptualize and create literal, metaphorical, and abstract possibilities.

Formally, this course will enable you to solve complex visual communication problems, work within parameters of specific formats, and determine the appropriateness of form for a given context. You will practice developing and using grids that accommodate text and image and create logical compositional movement. You will be expected to compose elements cohesively by developing a visual system and to consider proportional relationships between page elements and spaces. Given the long format of publications, you will come to pay great attention to typographic hierarchy, readability, and typographic details and to refine body copy type. You will further your capa- bilities in employing visual principles and devices for sequencing. You will be encouraged to create hand graphic, photographic, computer graphic, and typographic illustrations and to consider the visual, tactile, and aesthetic qualities of paper. In layout, type, and image, you will be asked to balance consideration of convention versus innovation.

Technically, this course will enable you to adhere to format parameters for existing publications and to establish format parameters for hypothetical ones, recognizing postal service requirements and constraints for sizing and folding if need be. You will be expected to utilize best practices such as master pages, character styles, and layers. You will be reminded of how to edit images and to produce images with correct resolution and color mode for printing. You will come to understand various color printing options and to become familiar with editorial review processes, self-publishing processes, and job routing processes. You will practice excellent craft in printing, trimming, and binding using various techniques.