Illustration

“Staffs helped me mature as a designer, through a passionate and enthusiastic teaching of the subject. The course encouraged a broad exploration of design early on, allowing me to then choose the disciples I wanted to pursue.”

Stephen Woowat
Roses award winner and now at Elmwood design

• Read Illustration course information (PDF, file size: 343.01KB)

Our cluster of Graphic Design awards attempt to reflect the multidisciplinary nature of contemporary visual communication. With an emphasis on creative visual thinking, we encourage diverse approaches to working with both digital and craft-based media. We provide you with a creative working environment for the exploration, development and cross-fertilisation of ideas, spanning a broad spectrum of disciplines from: typography, illustration, advertising and art direction, to editorial/magazine design. Our aim is to develop and harness your own capacity to think creatively through communication problems towards fresh and innovative solutions, encouraging collaboration and a strong sense of self-directed purpose.

Illustration students are encouraged to view themselves as thinkers as well as image makers, bringing life and a visual form to text or a message. Students will be strong visualisers and possess the ability to draw and innovate. Experimentation with mark making techniques will be encouraged through projects in collage, painting, print, photography, 3D materials and digital media. Students will also examine the history and future direction of illustration.

An excellent feature of this course is its strong links with the design industry including visiting lecturers from top design companies such as; Jonathan Barnbrook,, Glorious Creative, The Chase; membership and direct involvement with organisations such as D&AD, visits to design and advertising agencies and trips to cultural centres such as London, New York and Barcelona. Individual and experimental approaches are nurtured throughout the programme in order for you to discover your own unique talents and to find your own voice.

In order that you can tailor the course to your own pathway and skills, your chosen programme will be supported by a flexibly structured series of option choices taught by a range of specialist staff and will comprise: set-projects, competitions, lectures, seminars and workshops. At the centre of this activity lies a structure of group tutorials, critiques and personal tutorials.

In Level 4 you will be encouraged and inspired to think differently and to become more visually aware. Through a series of individual and team-based projects you will explore the interplay between word and image through experimentation in a wide range of media approaches in both two and three dimensions. Workshops in wood, metal, plastics, screen-printing, typography, and industry standard software packages are all offered at this level.
To compliment and enhance the core programme you are able to select from options in: photography, animation, 3D modelling, advertising and brand management, surface pattern, multimedia design, image making, design theory and cultural studies. The introduction of working methods, rules and parameters in Level 4 paves the way for more freedom and personal expression in Level 5.

Level 5 builds on your skills and knowledge acquired and looks in more depth at the breadth of graphic communication: taking into account such elements as promotion, corporate identity, editorial design, visual storytelling and typographic design to name a few. We have a number of option modules for you to choose from including: web design, digital illustration, advertising and packaging, photography and art direction, and an optional work placement module. The emphasis of the second year is on experimentation and professionalism, so you will explore a variety of media and learn to how to apply them appropriately within your projects.

In order to give you an understanding of the design industry there are opportunities to attend educational visits to top agencies in both New York and London. We also encourage you to enter into National Design competitions such as the MPA Roses and D&AD awards.
In preparation for Level 6 the final semester culminates in a personal project, where you can put to use all the skills you have acquired and to examine in more depth your individual interests within illustration/publication/graphic design.

The final year focuses on you and your own creative ambitions. You are grouped according to your area of interest and focus. Tutors act as facilitators encouraging you to discuss and debate subjects of social and cultural interest and to develop exciting visual communication solutions within your self negotiated programme of study. Design Futures is a distinctive Level 6 module which builds on the agency visits in Level 5, enabling you to research into your possible future, forging deeper links with industry and broadening your employment potential after graduation.

Our ‘real world’ focus has enabled graduates to succeed in a broad range of career pathways with students gaining employment in top creative companies such as The Chase, Elmwood, Love Creative, Channel 4 and True North, Lambie Nairn, Future Publishing and Hallmark. The course boasts many awards in D&AD, Roses, and RSA competitions.

We have an excellent reputation in the industry because of our emphasis on transferable skills, such as problem solving through exploration and lateral thinking, team work, communication skills and managing projects from concepts through to final presentations

• BA(Hons) Graphic Design and BA(Hons) Illustration Programme Specification (PDF, file size: 110.08KB)

For more information about Illustration (W220) please contact: