One Down, Four to Go
You would think after a year in Graphic Communications Design that I would know what it means to be a designer. But I don’t. I don’t think that any of us really do, at least not yet.
Being a designer can mean so many different things. It means being an artist, a problem solver, a communicator. I mean, it’s right there in the title of my major, Graphic Communications Design. We, as designers, work for causes so much more than ourselves. We work for people and with people. We are social, we are creative and we are versatile. We are thinkers, we are problem solvers and we are world changers. We are design.
Design is all around us. It is in everything that you see, whether you think about it or not. That’s the key to good design, you don’t necessarily know it’s there. Think about your toothbrush, sure someone, an engineer or maybe a designer somewhere, came up with the perfect bristles for a better clean. But what about the handle? The shape of it in your hand, the rubber added for a better grip. That’s design. It may not be graphic design but still it’s there. Overlooked, but nonetheless there.
This is one the things that I like best about my program. There’s no pigeonholing. I am not getting funneled into one type of job, or even one field. There are so many different careers available for designers. Unfortunately, there are also so many that I want to try. From design management, working at large corporations like P&G and combining with business, to environmental design and designing places and experiences, to print design and working with invitations or book covers or a unlimited number of other paper products. I want to do them all. And that doesn’t even begin to encompass graphic design. There’s only so much I can do in five coop terms. But I am young, some may even say naïve, but I have a whole life ahead of me and I’m determined to use it.
In the end, design and being a designer is about people. One thing that I have learned this year is how much I love people. Design exists best, I believe, in a collaborative environment. This is an environment where I find that I succeed. I like to talk, no I don’t ramble or lecture, but I like to talk about things that are important to me. This is one of the reasons that I am a ROAR tour guide and an Honors Program Ambassador. I want to show off the best aspects of the campus, the same way that I want to show off the best aspects of the Honors Program. I share my passions in many ways. In this case when I talk about them, but I also can share my passions through my design.
My main goal in life is to be happy. Going into this year and into this major that I hardly knew anything about I was terrified. Design? I’m not an artist. But I have found out that you don’t need to be. Design is more than just art; it serves a purpose, although it’s usually still interesting to look at. I have found that although I may not be the most talented student in the classroom, I love what I am doing. I really, really do. I didn’t know if it would fit, if I would fail or hate all of my classes and my teachers. It’s nothing of the sort. While class was at times frustrating beyond belief, when instructions were vague, or I was tasked to draw a still life, I made it through. I pushed myself outside, far outside my comfort zone and it paid off. My parents never thought I would be where I am today, honestly I never thought I would be where I am today. But I don’t want to be anywhere else. I’m happy.
I’m ready to be back on campus. I’m really looking forward to Typography 2 and not so much to Design Ideation. But I have faith in the process. That through all this I will figure out what it means to be a designer. My first year here at UC pushed me, its prodded me and at times made me want to cry out in angst. But here on the other side it doesn’t look too bad. I made it through after all, and on Dean’s List no less. The future is bright. The more immediate future… cough cough coop… is looking a little terrifying. But it’s no worse than this year, starting over somewhere completely new. We all have a fear of the unknown, the dark. But DAAP has kindly given me the gift of a flashlight. My light may not shine too bright just yet but I have the confidence to move forward wherever my dreams and my designs may take me.
Being a designer can mean so many different things. It means being an artist, a problem solver, a communicator. I mean, it’s right there in the title of my major, Graphic Communications Design. We, as designers, work for causes so much more than ourselves. We work for people and with people. We are social, we are creative and we are versatile. We are thinkers, we are problem solvers and we are world changers. We are design.
Design is all around us. It is in everything that you see, whether you think about it or not. That’s the key to good design, you don’t necessarily know it’s there. Think about your toothbrush, sure someone, an engineer or maybe a designer somewhere, came up with the perfect bristles for a better clean. But what about the handle? The shape of it in your hand, the rubber added for a better grip. That’s design. It may not be graphic design but still it’s there. Overlooked, but nonetheless there.
This is one the things that I like best about my program. There’s no pigeonholing. I am not getting funneled into one type of job, or even one field. There are so many different careers available for designers. Unfortunately, there are also so many that I want to try. From design management, working at large corporations like P&G and combining with business, to environmental design and designing places and experiences, to print design and working with invitations or book covers or a unlimited number of other paper products. I want to do them all. And that doesn’t even begin to encompass graphic design. There’s only so much I can do in five coop terms. But I am young, some may even say naïve, but I have a whole life ahead of me and I’m determined to use it.
In the end, design and being a designer is about people. One thing that I have learned this year is how much I love people. Design exists best, I believe, in a collaborative environment. This is an environment where I find that I succeed. I like to talk, no I don’t ramble or lecture, but I like to talk about things that are important to me. This is one of the reasons that I am a ROAR tour guide and an Honors Program Ambassador. I want to show off the best aspects of the campus, the same way that I want to show off the best aspects of the Honors Program. I share my passions in many ways. In this case when I talk about them, but I also can share my passions through my design.
My main goal in life is to be happy. Going into this year and into this major that I hardly knew anything about I was terrified. Design? I’m not an artist. But I have found out that you don’t need to be. Design is more than just art; it serves a purpose, although it’s usually still interesting to look at. I have found that although I may not be the most talented student in the classroom, I love what I am doing. I really, really do. I didn’t know if it would fit, if I would fail or hate all of my classes and my teachers. It’s nothing of the sort. While class was at times frustrating beyond belief, when instructions were vague, or I was tasked to draw a still life, I made it through. I pushed myself outside, far outside my comfort zone and it paid off. My parents never thought I would be where I am today, honestly I never thought I would be where I am today. But I don’t want to be anywhere else. I’m happy.
I’m ready to be back on campus. I’m really looking forward to Typography 2 and not so much to Design Ideation. But I have faith in the process. That through all this I will figure out what it means to be a designer. My first year here at UC pushed me, its prodded me and at times made me want to cry out in angst. But here on the other side it doesn’t look too bad. I made it through after all, and on Dean’s List no less. The future is bright. The more immediate future… cough cough coop… is looking a little terrifying. But it’s no worse than this year, starting over somewhere completely new. We all have a fear of the unknown, the dark. But DAAP has kindly given me the gift of a flashlight. My light may not shine too bright just yet but I have the confidence to move forward wherever my dreams and my designs may take me.