Summer Study Abroad - Graphic Communication Design
Apply nowUnderstand Graphic Communication Design as an expanded practice.
At Central Saint Martins we encourage you to examine your role not only as a graphic designer but as a citizen of the world; you have the skills to communicate vital messages to the world, have an impact and be a catalyst for change.
Taught by: David Preston and others
At Central Saint Martins we understand Graphic Communication Design as an expanded practice. This means we are interested in thinking about design from a broad range of perspectives that challenge conventional understandings of the discipline.
During this intensive three-week course you will experience a taster of the five study Platforms that make up the undergraduate Graphic Communication Design programme here at Central Saint Martins. These platforms will introduce you to a range of ways of thinking and feeling about design. The Platforms in question are: Experience & Environment, Information & Systems, Narrative & Voice, Strategy & identity, and Time & Movement.
Within each Platform experience you will be given a different project brief to challenge your understanding of the subject. These short projects will stimulate your thinking and enable you to become more confident of your own areas of interest and specialism. While embarking on these projects there will be opportunities to explore the city, thus enabling you to experience what London has to offer as a world-renowned cultural destination.
The final week of the course will provide a more open-ended studio environment to enable you to bring more of your own personal position and agenda to the fore. During this final week you will choose one of the five Platforms briefs to develop further into your own personal project.
Course level: Intermediate / Level 4/5 (please see Entry Requirements)
Dr David Preston holds a BA (Hons) degree in Graphic Design from Central Saint Martins (2004); a Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching and Learning from CLTAD (2011); and a PhD from UAL on the history of branding in Britain (2019). After his undergraduate degree David took a post at the BBC, working as an information designer with the award-winning News Interactive team responsible for producing the BBC News website. From 2006 to 2009 he worked as a designer for various small boutique London agencies, including Kerr Noble, Studio Small and Praline. During this time, he worked with a broad range of clients including large international brands (Toyota, Swire), publishers (Rizzoli, Phaidon, Bloomsbury, Prestel, Laurence King), renowned arts and cultural institutions (BAFTA, Heal's, Modern Art Oxford), and new start-ups (Eager Drinks).
David began teaching short courses at Central Saint Martins in 2005 and joined the typography department of the undergraduate degree programme in Graphic Design the following year. Since then he has worked with students in all stages of the course, acting as Senior Lecturer in Typography, Route and Subject Leader for Design & Interaction, and Platform Leader for Strategy & Identity. Outside CSM he has delivered postgraduate and undergraduate teaching and learning activities at the Royal College of Art, London College of Communication, Colchester School of Art, and Escola Superior de Artes e Design (Porto). Since 2009 he has led his own consultancy, David Preston Studio, specialising in publishing and visual identity. Recent clients have included Universal Music, Lund Humphries, Antique Collectors Club and The Good Schools Guide.
Bobby Gunthorpe is a graphic designer working for a range of large and small clients in print, multimedia and web. He gained his degree at Central Saint Martins.
Please bring with you to the first session:
- A laptop with Adobe Software (if you are able)
- A digital camera or phone with a camera
- A black marker pen
- Pens and pencils (including coloured pencils or pens)
- Scissors, a small ruler, eraser
Please note items can also be purchased from the college shop.
Summer Study Abroad - Graphic Communication Design (PDF 259KB) course handbook.
Students booking onto this course are expected to be independent and highly motivated and should have prior experience in graphic design, preferably having completed one year at university level (undergraduate-level study in graphic design).