For the health and safety of the Grand Valley community, remote academic instruction will continue through June 17. The Admissions office is available to answer calls Mon.-Fri. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 616-331-2025 or 1-800-748-0246 or email admissions@gvsu.edu. Additional instructions and updates at www.gvsu.edu/coronavirus
As an Illustrator you can look forward to rich and diverse professional opportunities. Faculty will help you explore a variety of media and styles to find your best professional fit. Our alumni work in areas as varied as magazines, book covers, children’s books, website design, advertising, clothing design, greeting cards, educational materials, social/political advocacy, animation, and gallery work. Students interested in pursuing an emphasis in Illustration must participate in a secondary admissions review after completion of the Foundations Review. Students may pursue a B.F.A. in Studio Art in this emphasis.
Students may pursue a B.F.A. in Studio Art in this emphasis. The B.F.A. in Studio Art is designed for students interested in a professional degree in art or design. This degree will prepare students for a career as a professional illustrator. Aside from Illustration, eight other Emphasis Areas are available to choose from in the B.F.A. degree.
Student in Illustration discuss their work with faculty
Only illustrators with broad-based knowledge, good business sense, superior research skills, technical facility, and sustained commitment will succeed. The illustration curriculum for this emphasis is designed to help students become adept in these areas and to help them learn to balance historical perspectives of the field with an awareness of contemporary practices. In addition, majors are encouraged to balance aesthetic sensitivity with professional practicality and traditional craft with individual creativity.
Durwin Talon
Assistant Professor
Guin Thompson
Assistant Professor, Area Coordinator
An introduction to printing methods, typography, layout, and paper
choices as they relate to creating self-promotional materials
and illustrations which print successfully.
Offered winter semester.
Credits: 3
An overview of the illustration field covering historical and
contemporary perspectives, aesthetic sensitivity, and professional
practicality.
Offered fall and winter semesters.
Prerequisites & Notes
Prerequisite: Admission to Illustration.
Credits: 3
Fundamentals of illustration with an emphasis on digital imaging
methods.
Offered fall and winter semesters.
Prerequisites: ART 280.
Credits: 3
Fundamentals of illustration with an emphasis on realistic
representation.
Offered fall semester.
Prerequisites: ART 381.
Credits: 3
Refinement and development of a body of work constituting a
professional portfolio.
Offered fall semester.
Prerequisites: ART 382.
Credits: 3
Development of a body of work focusing on a specific aspect of
graphic design or illustration in which the student wishes to
specialize. The work will be shown along with the student’s portfolio
as the senior show.
Offered fall and winter semesters.
Prerequisites: ART 483.
Credits: 3
Development of a personal style of illustration supported by an
examination of historical trends. Offered fall semester.
Prerequisites: ART 382.
Credits: 3
Development of personal styles of illustration supported by an
examination of contemporary trends. Offered fall semester.
Prerequisites: ART 482.
Credits: 3
Classes in the illustration program are held in the illustration and painting studios as well as computer labs in Calder Art Center. These diverse facilities help students cultivate the technical proficiency necessary to develop their individual artistic focus and personal approach to the field. Many students in the illustration emphasis have personal studio spaces in a common room that encourage informal discussions between peers.
Student Interest Group Illustration (SIGIL) is a GVSU based illustration group open to all art and non-art majors, including university alumni. SIGIL is Grand Valley's very first organization for students who enjoy drawing and sharing their artwork with others. We meet weekly and make art, sell art, and bring new resources to Grand Valley's artistic community.
Prospective Students are invited to attend one of the High School Student Receptions, held throughout the academic year. Receptions follow the Laker Experience Days.
For questions about the Illustration area, please contact:
Durwin Talon
Illustration Coordinator
1108 Calder Arts Center
(616) 331-3576
talond@gvsu.edu
Art Education — Art History — Ceramics — Film & Video Production — Graphic Design — Illustration — Jewelry and Metalsmithing — Painting — Photography — Printmaking — Sculpture — Visual Studies
