Become a Junior
Art Director
Spring / January 15 – May 11, 2018
Fall / September 3 – December 14, 2018
Over 360 Studio Hours in one year
Switch Junior Art Directors work on projects for Italian real-market clients and absorb essential rich hands-on graphic design experience
Professional Practice
You create and develop your professional profile and are directly engaged in the Italian market by being presented to notoriuos designers
Critical Thinking
You develop a peronal designer's eye after one-year-long research, analysis, observation, interpretation and evaluation of the design world
Problem Solving Skills
Junior Art Director acquire the analytical and and creative skills that makes you an effective decision maker and solution investigator
GDM
Junior Art Director
MASTER
SEMESTER 1&2 [40cr.]
*Mandatory Master Courses
GRAMT
Thesis / Research, Proposal, Development & Presentation [6cr.]*
Junior Art Director formulate a personal creative research project that builds upon the skills acquired in their first two academic years. This class involves researching, analyzing and creating a formal proposal and project brief to present to a thesis committee. The Thesis represents individual creative work that shall combine the components of print and digital forms. Junior Art Directors present their story through visuals, mockups or short videos/animation. Then they develop their Thesis proposal into life. They have the freedom to choose the medium that best demonstrates and serves their project. At the end of the year they present the whole package (the original project, the storyboard development and visual written description) in the exhibition where notorious designers and clients are engaged.
SWP100M
Switch Studio [8cr.]*
The studio offers students plenty of time to put their new skills into practice and develop their design vision. Before long, they will be thinking like a designer and tackling most current technological tools where they can produce innovative and qualified (real-world) design solutions.
GRA101M
Professional Preparation, Portfolio, Marketing & Advertising [6cr.]*
Junior art directors create their professional profiles through developing effective print and digital portfolios. Explore effective ways of making themselves visible on various social media networks and search engines. They learn the principles of storytelling and the effective ways of selling their story to the market. The course prepares the students to career paths whereby they develop a whole self-marketing package that includes their printable portfolio, resume, cover letter, logo, business card, website and social media platform. They develop their personal professional print and online profiles that directly fits them into the world market.
GRA000
Yoga, Jogging, Cycling [2cr.]
A physical education course that allows the students maintain a healthy lifestyle during their stay in Florence. The classes are conducted outdoors and in groups whereby the students explore Florence in a safe and fun environment. Main activities are yoga, jogging and biking.
Optional Master Courses
(minimum 3 courses per semester)
Masters students have the freedom to choose their courses of interest from the list below or from other GD courses depending on the emphasis they wish to specialize in.
GRA102M
Graphic Design M / Corporate Identity, Packaging & Label, Branding & Printing Techniques [3cr.]
The courses emphasize on conceptualizing, briefing, and developing effective marketing image. Junior art directors master logo design, three dimensional understanding of objects, development of functional and effective designs, branding strategies/procedures. They explore various printing methods, materials and media by visiting print industries in Florence.
GRA103M
Digital Media / Web, App, UI, UX, Motion [3cr.]
This course introduces junior art directors to the world of digital media. It is an guide to user interface and user experience for websites and mobile applications. Students master the principles of creating websites, mobile platforms, motion graphics and animations through the latest software applications.
GRA104M
Photography M [3cr.]
The courses cover the aesthetic and theoretical principles of traditional and digital photography, exposure, lighting, color, lens operation, camera and its components. Junior art directors learn advanced photo editing softwares whereby they develop image editing and photo correction skills.
GRA105M
Typography M [3cr.]
Junior art directors master the context of letterforms, typefaces, spacing, grid, layout, expression, and communication while exploring the evolution of typography from history until today. Projects range from print editorials to screen-based interactive media publications to creation of personalised typeface.
GRA106M
Drawing / Painting M [3cr.]
The course is an emphasis on the fundamental techniques of analog and/or digital drawing and painting. Students learn about more advanced composition elements with colors, such as contrast, saturation, transparency, tints and shades as they draw real-life scenes, abstraction, distortion and comics. Classes are not only conducted at school but also outdoors, in the city of Florence and its museums.
GRA107M
Design Programs M [3cr.]
Explore the world’s best design applications. Switch junior art directors develop technical proficiency. The classes cover complicated techniques of Adobe Suite softwares whereby the main focus is on image manipulation and rasterization, effects application, editorial production, and output techniques for end-result projects as well as latest industry standard softwares of UI, UX for website design and mobile applications.
* Program may be subject to change
YOU WILL LEARN
Your Portfolio Skills
Skills & Expertise
- Branding
- Packaging
- Photography
- Typeface Design
- Interactive Multimedia / App / Web…
- Digital Illustration, Comic
- Printmaking Techniques
- Professional Practice
For Your Portfolio:
Projects examples
- Corporate Identity
- Wine Label, Packaging
- Ios or Android Application
- Website
- Serigraphy Print
- Typeface, Font
- Video Mapping
- Commercial Photography
Some clients that Switch designers work with.
