Graphics Teachers Exchange Blog

Competitive Edge: "Designers are Big Shots These Days"

2009-10-26T15:35:56-04:00

Kay Hymowitz's fascinating article in the City Journal,
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Businesswoman, describes the rising status of design in modern business:

Image by JPowersNY via Flickr

Visual artists are living in a career candy store filled with cool jobs that didn’t exist when their parents were their age; some, indeed, were the stuff of futurist fantasy even ten years ago. There are graphic, industrial, set, and Web designers; costume, dress, shoe, handbag, furniture, wallpaper, tile, and toy designers; strategic, font, user-interface, video-game, and infographic designers. There are creative and art directors, fashion and food stylists, production and lighting artists, and animators. There are even—I kid you not—experiential designers, lifestyle designers, design anthropologists, and design psychologists.

We often focus on measurable Quark or Powerpoint or PhotoShop learning in classrooms, but an overall "sense of design" is more elementary and will last longer than any particular graphic skill.

Digital Photo Competition, Tech & Learning

2009-09-18T01:15:01-04:00

Tech & Learning magazine invites K-12 students to participate in its seventh annual digital photography contest. The competition, open to all K-12 students, challenges you to capture — and share — your unique vision of the world. If you have an artistic side, you also have the option to digitally enhance your photos with your favorite imaging software. The top 4 winners in each grade level (elementary, middle, and high school) win prizes and have their photo featured in the December Awards Issue of Tech & Learning. Visit the Tech & Learning web site for more information.

THE ON-LINE SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS OCTOBER 9, 2009

Free Teacher Training: 5-Day Update in PA, 3-Day Conference in IL

2009-03-08T18:49:48-04:00

The national graphic arts associations -- the Graphic Arts Show Company (GASC)and Printing Industries of America (PIA) -- are sponsoring two events free to teachers:

Applying Technology in the Classroom

July 13-17, 1009 / Sewickly, PA
The 2009 GASC/Printing Industries of America Teacher’s Update, July 13–17, will provide attendees with an understanding of new technologies for education, training, and retraining needs for tomorrow’s work force. This one-week program is held at Printing Industries of America’s global headquarters in Sewickley, Pennsylvania. It includes both classroom and laboratory sessions in Printing Industries of America’s production facility, which showcases the latest equipment and cutting-edge technology.

Technology Trends in Graphic Communications
September 11-13, 2009 / Chicago, IL
The 2009 GASC/Printing Industries of America Teacher’s Conference provides an opportunity for graphic arts teachers to learn about current industry trends and see the latest equipment and supplies. This three-day program will be held on September 11–13, 2009, at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois, during PRINT® 09—2009’s largest, most comprehensive global exhibition for the graphic communications industry.

Funding
Registration is free. Selected applicants will receive funding for travel. See the PDF brochure for details.

Deadlines
Applications must be received no later than April 24, 2009 to qualify for either program. Selected applicants for each program will be notified by May 1, 2009 and must confirm their attendance by June 8, 2009.

For more information, download the PDF event brochure (600.6K)

2009 National Student Design Competition: May 1 Deadline

2009-03-08T16:33:08-04:00

Topic: Careers in Graphic Communications…Imagine the Possibilities!

1st Place Awards:

$2,000 plus a two-day all-inclusive paid trip for the student(s) and instructor to attend PRINT 09 in Chicago, IL (one secondary winner; one post-secondary winner)

2nd Place Awards:
$1,500 (one secondary winner; one post-secondary winner)

3rd Place Awards:
$1,000 (one secondary winner; one post-secondary winner)

This competition will challenge students to create and produce a marketing product designed to appeal to our industry’s future workforce. Participants will be encouraged to be creative and take their design from concept to finished product.

The competition is open to all students attending recognized secondary or post-secondary institutions and studying in a graphic communications/printing, advertising, graphic design or interactive media program. Students may enter individually or in teams of up to three. Instructors are required to submit the entry; limited to one entry per instructor. All entries become the property of the Graphic Arts Education and Research Foundation, and may be reproduced and distributed.

Submission deadline is May 1, 2009. See the GAERF web site for details.

Competition Deadline Postponed to March 3

2009-03-02T12:18:05-05:00

Because of the closing of schools for a Snow Day, the deadline for on-line submissions to the Eighth Annual Citywide Graphic Arts Competition has been postponed to Tuesday, March 3, 2009.

Best of luck to all entrants!

Monday, March 2 Commission Meeting Cancelled

2009-03-01T20:07:01-05:00

Because of the upcoming snow storm, the Graphic Arts Educational Advisory Commission meeting scheduled for Monday, March 2, 2009 at the High School of Art & Design has been postponed. A new date will be announced shortly.

Stay warm.

NY Citywide Graphic Arts Competition set for April 8

2009-01-07T15:38:14-05:00

The Eighth Annual New York Citywide Graphic Arts Competition launched Monday and the Qualifying Round of local public school competitions is now underway.

The deadline for submitting entries is Monday, March 2. Judges will review the work and post the Qualifying Round winners on March 18. Finalists will be invited to compete at CityTech in Brooklyn on Wednesday, April 8.

The themes and rubrics for the Qualifying Round are posted at the Competition web site:

Powerpoint Presentation: "The Audacity of Hope"
Desktop Publishing & Design: A Graphics Scholarship poster
Wed Site Design: "Help in the Global Economy"
Digital Photograph: "Irony"
(The Offset Printing category has no preliminary round.)

See the web site for full details.

Comparing Graphics Employment Trends

2008-12-09T14:16:15-05:00

Here's an interesting chart provided by SimplyHired.com, the search engine for jobs that we use on the Graphic Communications Jobs Board. What's interesting is not just the growth, it's the relative scale. There are four times as many jobs in some areas as in others.

Graphic Design, Digital Video, Photography, Printing, Video Games trends

Graphic Design jobs | Digital Video jobs | Photography jobs | Printing jobs | Video Games jobs

See how the numbers change when you scan product names:

Powerpoint, Photoshop, InDesign, Quark, Dreamweaver trends

Powerpoint jobs | Photoshop jobs | InDesign jobs | Quark jobs | Dreamweaver jobs

These are national figures. New York City stats are probably different.

Alternate Link to Competition Roster Circumvents Websense Glitch

2008-05-16T15:03:31-04:00

Teachers trying to check the Finalists roster of the Annual Citywide Graphic Arts Competition are getting blocked by Websense, the cybercensorship program. If you have trouble accessing the Graphics Teachers Exchange web site at:
http://gtexchange.org/cgac/finalists.htm

try this alternate link that re-posts the information to Google Docs:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=ddhj78bf_3dckjdjqh

Websense was erroneously blocking Google.com last week, but apparently that error has been fixed. For now, Google.com is less likely to be blocked than our other site options.

We've started the process of getting the mistaken ban lifted, but it will take time. If you know any teacher who needs to see the Competition Finalists, pass the word.

Call for Presenters: HS of Art & Design Career Fair

2008-05-07T17:43:33-04:00

The High School of Art & Design's annual Career Fair takes place on Tuesday, May 20 and the school is recruiting volunteers from industry to come and share career experiences, meet the next generation and network with other industry professionals at this pioneering institution.

You should be prepared to speak with groups of students for approximately 40 minutes at a time. Get there at 8:30AM and plan to stay until around 3:00PM. A very helpful list of possible topics is included after the "Continue Reading" link below.

To sign up, contact

Ayoka Cox

Email: acox3@schools.nyc.gov
Phone: 212-752-4340 x1441
High School of Art & Design, 1075 Second Avenue, NY, N Y 10022

Possible Topics for Career Fair Class Presentations

1. What do you do on the job?
Do you work more with DATA, PEOPLE, IDEAS, or THINGS?
Decisions you make
Equipment/Tools you use/Products

2. What personal characteristics and interests are required?
Job likes and dislikes
Attitude needed
Type of interaction with other workers

3. What are the educational requirements of the job?
High school subjects: 2 year, 4 year degree, or further
On-the-job training, apprenticeship, or other training

4. In what kind of environment do you work?
Your work setting: (factory, office, dangerous, high pressure, outside …
Physical and/or psychological demands
Travel required: Hours, Shifts
Union, Non-union

5. Career Paths
What are some possible career paths leading to this job?
What are some related skills and training?
Other employers?
What are possible future career paths?

6. What is the employment outlook for people entering your field in the future?
Salary ranges, benefits
Geographic location

7. Do you have any interesting background stories?