AME Media Arts 1

COURSE OVERVIEW

This course is part of Lincoln’s Digital Media Design (DMD) Academy, which is part of SFUSD’s CTE Program and is a California Arts, Media, & Entertainment (AME) Industry Sector course.  This year-long course provides a hands-on introduction to the technical and creative skills of a professional graphic designer through the use of industry standard graphic design principles and the industry standard software, Adobe Illustrator. This course covers the manipulation of graphic form to convey meaning, strategies for idea generation and the development of unique concepts, and the designer's role as visual storyteller. First, students learn the distinguishing features and elements of communicating visually through graphic design. Next, they gain technical skills in Adobe Illustrator to equip them for doing authentic graphic design work. From there, students master the basic principles of graphic design and then delve into elements of graphic design such as vector design creation, color, typography, and images by working on various projects simulating the work done within the creative arts industry. This course fulfills U.C. A-G course requirements.  Students who are part of an academy at Lincoln are required to maintain a minimum G.P.A. of 2.0 to remain and participate in the academy.

Student Learning Outcomes (SLO’s):

• Explore various careers in graphic design and dive in deep into ones of personal interest

• Learn about and create your own effective/professional resume, cover letter, and job application, and learn proper interview techniques and personal habits for the professional workplace setting in order to secure an internship experience

• Understanding who your audience is in order to create appropriate design project deliverables for a client
• Understanding copyright rules and how to use various creative commons graphics for project use
• Learning effective design principles such as unity, rhythm, contrast, balance, scale/proportion, figure/ground/gestalt, time & motion in order to incorporate them into various projects throughout the year
• Understand & use effectively the elements of graphic design (i.e.: point, line, shape, texture, depth, value, & color) in various projects throughout the year
• Understanding image size and resolution for different project needs
• Understanding Adobe Illustrator features & use, including: it’s interface, using colors/fills/blends, vector drawing, graphic elements, and layers/masks
• Creating various graphics in Adobe Illustrator by using drawing and shape tools, typography, scanned images, 3D graphics, and transformation tools
• Understanding how to publish graphics for export for print, web, and mobile devices
• Understanding proper project management techniques while working on project teams
• Create a professional design portfolio of your work demonstrating various design skills/techniques to be exhibited online to show potential employers/internship providers/college admission offices