Poster and Advertising Forms Design Studio

Head of the studio:

prof. Sławomir Witkowski

Assistant:

mgr Rafał Fedusio

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The subject matter of the class includes the development of the skills of conscious choice of means and methods of design, taking into account the knowledge of psychophysiology of vision and history – to the present day of graphic design.

The aim of the studio is to prepare students for professional work as designers taking up and realising the challenges of the commercial graphics market, but also creatively creating works from the sphere of high culture. The designers are able to interpret complicated manifestations of human activity and contemporary world phenomena, especially in times of dynamically developing electronic media.

Students solve from 6 to 8 tasks in each semester, constructed in the didactic process progressively, according to the level of difficulty and the extent of the problem. The structure of the didactic material evenly develops in the students the ability to create a message, articulated by word and image, at the same time in meaning (content, meaning) and visual layer (form, composition).

The thematic scope of individual tasks includes both the construction and creation of the visual message contained in the classic concept of poster – with reference to excellent examples and patterns of the “Polish school of poster” – as well as the implementation of contemporary ambient campaigns.

The programme provides for active participation of students in national and international poster and design form competitions (two tasks per semester).

Exercises in visual message design allow students to improve the use of graphic language as a form of persuasion and visual information. Cooperation with management and marketing students of the University of Gdańsk is planned. It assumes the implementation of a joint project concerning a full-scale advertising, promotional or propaganda campaign, covering all information carriers – outdoor, press, electronic media (construction of advertising film storyboards) (one task per semester).

Students also carry out exercises teaching them the skills of designing and mock-up publishing layouts and forms, such as: press advertisement, leaflet, newspaper spreadsheet, etc.

There may also be tasks in the field of graphic sign construction – for a company or brand – with elements of building visual identification systems.

If a graphic designer is unable to cope with the tasks set by the contemporary market on his own, he should at least understand the phenomena of broadly understood visual communication. This understanding is shaped by the Academy, where his professional and artistic education takes place.