The newest crop of graphic and digital designers will be graduating this year, marking the first class of students to go through UFV's newly re-launched program, hosted at the Mission campus.
The class members refer to themselves collectively as Green.
“Green is new and fresh. It’s where we’re from, and where we’re headed. We are Green, the first class of graphic designers in the Fraser Valley,” says a statement on the class web page.
The program will host A First for Design in the Valley, its first portfolio shows of graduates’ work, at two venues this month.
The first is April 16 in Mission at the UFV campus at Heritage Park Centre (33700 Prentis Ave.), with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. where people can meet the designers and see their portfolios while enjoying complimentary drinks and appetizers.
Then from 7 to 9 p.m. guest speakers will provide an engaging look at designing for the future in a presentation called A First Glance.
The second is April 24 in Abbotsford at The Reach Gallery Museum (32388 Veterans Way), 5 to 7 p.m. The presentation from 7 to 9 p.m. is called Creative Balance and features a Pechakucha events, in which speakers will present 20 images each, with the images advancing automatically every 20 seconds.
The two-year diploma program has produced graduates who will head off into the world of creativity with a portfolio of finished sample products that include everything from beer-bottle labels to milk cartons. “I love print design,” says Ashleigh Long, one of several grads. “After I graduate I am going to get a job in a small agency and build enough knowledge and experience to one day open my own design studio.”
With an emphasis on the student experience, real world projects, issues and contexts were brought into the classroom during the program. The diploma introduced five different disciplines in the field of graphic design including communication design, visual identity, information design, dynamic media, and interactive design.
For more information on the show and its graduating class (including a sneak peek at each grad’s portfolio) and the upcoming shows go to designmission.ca. To find out more about the program go to ufv.ca/graphics.