By Maria Ignas (BA 25) and Kalli Kauffman (BA 27)
Are you the person who’s never caught without a sketchbook in your hand or a design app open on your phone? You might consider a degree in graphic design or in art and visual culture with an illustration focus. These programs help train creators to employ the basics of art and design across both traditional and digital media.
What do Graphic Designers Do?
Creating and storytelling are vital aspects of graphic design. Many individuals who feel called into this field are passionate about the art of creation and desire to learn how to professionally use their artistic interests or abilities.
“Graphic design is the application of art to solve communication problems visually,” said Professor Aaron Winey, director of the visual arts program.
So, what do graphic designers do? The world of graphic design combines imagery and text (called typography) into their work for effective communication. This means learning how to communicate through a wide range of digital and printed means.
For example, graphic designers create and design page layouts, book covers, websites, sales and marketing package design, apparel graphics, information graphics, and other visual communication.
Since graphic design has a broad focus, students are able to use skills in their interest areas of illustration, layout, and digital design to make different types of messages using images and text. In many cases, this means sourcing existing imagery, to help their concepts come to life.
In order to thrive in this field, it’s important to develop skills that are practical and applicable to what you desire to pursue.
“The key skills a graphic designer needs are to push themselves to think differently, and to look at the world in a curious and inquisitive way,” Winey said.
This includes being able to research, learn new things, apply adaptability to the latest programs, and ask important questions.
Grace’s graphic design program, for instance, focuses on teaching students practical knowledge that they can apply to the real world.
Students like you develop an understanding of their imaginative process and learn how to present, create, and discuss an artistic portfolio in an appealing and compelling way. You learn from professors who are active in their careers and are up-to-date with technology and programs.
If designing an advertisement or brand logo gets you excited, a degree in graphic design may be the right fit for you.
Arts and Visual Culture – Illustration Concentration
Illustration uses art to represent a concept and to tell a story. It involves artistic, expressive images that resonate with an audience. In most situations, illustrators focus on creating different images to fit a pre-made message.
To accomplish this, some illustrators use traditional media, such as colored pencils and fine-point pens. Others utilize digital illustration software. Within these types of media, students in this field have the opportunity to create imagery from their original concepts.
These different media present similarities between graphic design vs illustration. In some capacities, for instance, illustrations serve as an aspect of graphic design.
While a graphic designer chooses the typography and kinds of images to include in a design, an illustrator serves as a resource to create the illustration. Both fields help inform and assist the other.
“Because we’re a small program, most of our students have skills in illustration, design, and photography,” Dr. Kim Reiff, professor of visual art and design, said. “A lot of times, they will have to wear many hats, especially in small businesses.”
While most students who enter this type of field desire to illustrate books for children, this career intersects with a variety of disciplines.
An Art and Visual Culture major focused in illustration allows for job opportunities to design elements of architecture, characters, fashion, healthcare, and more.
These career paths require you to develop an understanding of composition, lines, artistic elements, and design principles. As an illustrator, you must be creative, patient, and most importantly, you must excel in drawing as the foundation of art as well as your specialty medium itself.
”If you can draw well, you can be an illustrator,” Reiff said.
In an illustration concentration, your courses in drawing, photography, and design will train you to use a variety of media to produce dynamic, expressive art. If you love creating compelling images that relay a message, consider a concentration in illustration.
Making the Choice Between Graphic Design Vs Illustration
For lovers of art, graphic design vs illustration provides a tough choice. Both offer exciting pathways and possibilities. If you’re wondering “What do graphic designers do?” or what the differences or similarities are between an illustrator vs graphic designer, meet people within the prospective fields.
Explore our graphic design major and arts and visual culture major with a concentration in illustration.
For more information about a graphic design vs illustration degree, learn about our students and their pursuits. Read about Ethan Jordan, who used graphic design to create Kosciusko County’s Parks and Recreation logo.
