Verified Document

Graphic Design Vs. Illustrator Essay

¶ … Life as a graphic designer vs. An illustrator 'What can you do with an art degree?' This is a common question asked of students who major in studio art or who get an MFA (Masters of Fine Arts). However, there are many professions which allow artists to create art and make a living. Two of these professions are that of a graphic designer and an illustrator. These professions share the common denominator of allowing someone to make a living with their creative visual intelligence. However, they require slightly different skill sets because of the unique nature of each profession. This paper will compare the typical activities of both professions; the skills and philosophies needed to perform the tasks required of graphic designers vs. illustrators; and the likely demand for professionals in these fields in the future.

Everyone has encountered the work of a graphic designer, even if he or she is unaware of this fact. The distinctive logo of Coca-Cola; the icon that represents a website on your browser; or an album jacket or a book cover are all the work of a graphic designer. "Graphic designers work with drawn, painted, photographed, or computer-generated images (pictures), but they also design the letterforms that make up various typefaces found in movie credits and TV ads; in books, magazines, and menus; and even on computer screens" (Poggenpohl 1993). Graphic design is thus a marriage of technology and art. An astute graphic designer will be a maestro of a variety of computer programs, yet have the...

Graphic designers must know how to manipulate shapes and colors to catch people's eyes and to communicate the value of a product (Starbucks coffee), idea (no smoking), or other concept. On one level, graphic design is highly abstract -- yet it is also very concrete as a profession. Think of how something like the logo for the Olympics communicates something very specific (an event) yet also the spirit of the games. Graphic design can function as a mental shorthand or symbol, yet through the beauty and simplicity of design it communicates something more powerfully than words. However, it should be noted that graphic designers do sometimes use words, yet somewhat differently than would a writer. "To designers, what the words look like is as important as their meaning. The visual forms, whether typography (communication designed by means of the printed word) or handmade lettering, perform many communication functions" (Poggenpohl 1993). Because of the increasingly visual nature of media culture in the age of the Internet, graphic design is becoming more and more important as a profession. For example, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics notes: "Employment of graphic designers is projected to increase by 13% from 2010 to 2020" ("Graphic designer," BLS, 2013). Today, even small businesses have websites, blogs, and distinctive lettering to remain competitive in a noisy information marketplace, and thus graphic designers will be in high demand. It is a competitive profession and often requires…

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited

"Artist." Bureau of Labor and Statistics BLS. 2013. [8 Feb 2013]

http://www.bls.gov/k12/music03.htm

"Graphic designer." Bureau of Labor and Statistics BLS. 2013. [8 Feb 2013]

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Arts-and-Design/Graphic-designers.htm
http://graphicdesign.about.com/od/careerpaths/a/illustration.htm
http://www.aiga.org/guide-whatisgraphicdesign/
http://graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/6787/what-does-it-mean-to-be-an-illustrator
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Graphic Design: The Influence of
Words: 2625 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Paper

Multimedia options and technology buttress need for graphic design Technology, as they say, is everywhere. And it's in everyone's hands. Fifteen years ago, cell phones were still uncommon among adults. Today, it seems peculiar if a young child doesn't own one, too. But phones are just a mere segment of the communication and multimedia explosion. The emergence of smartphones, Blackberries and iPads have made information accessible and available immediately, right upon our

History of Graphic Design Technology
Words: 3422 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

However, it is good to note that despite the numbers of typefaces, designers were seemed to be not contented with it. The new batch of designers did not maximize using the traditional typefaces offered to them by the computer, and they opted to use specialized software programs and created new type forms. Not only were they able to create unique typeface of their own, but they were also able to

Impact of Desktop Publishing on Graphic Design
Words: 802 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Desktop publishing (DTP) has revolutionized the field of graphic design, marking a significant shift in how graphic designers create, manipulate, and distribute visual content. Before the advent of DTP, graphic design was largely a manual process, involving physical media such as paper, pens, brushes, and printing plates. With the introduction of DTP software in the 1980s, particularly Adobe PageMaker, which was followed by a suite of other Adobe products including

Graphic Art It Is Possible
Words: 2185 Length: 7 Document Type: Research Paper

The codes appeared on the screen and were read by trained typographers. In 1970, the Merganthaler Linotype VIP became the first phototypesetter to incorporate a minicomputer with programmable software that could be used to process raw text within the output machine (Barlow & Eccles, 1992). The graphic artist and designer had been losing some of their credibility in relationship to the fine artists up to the 1970s, because typesetting became

TESOL: Materials and Course Design a Situation
Words: 6759 Length: 24 Document Type: Essay

TESOL: Materials and Course Design A situation analysis, giving all details available before the course begins: New comers of the TESOL school scheme will be assessed for their English language proficiency by the teachers assigned by TESOL (Teaching of English to speakers of other languages). Programming system will be run under this teacher - member of TESOL (Dorr, 2006). This TOSEL teacher is assigned to assist and teach student in establishing sound understanding

Adobe Illustrator Adobe Recently Introduced
Words: 328 Length: 1 Document Type: Term Paper

Adobe Illustrator CS2 also has enhanced and intelligent use of vector design graphics, which can be translated into QuickTime movies through a series of vector-to-raster conversions. This is a differentiating feature of Illustrator CS 2 in that designers don't have to go out of their design program and into a QuickTime Editor to create the animated clips from Illustrator drawings. There are many other new features in this version

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now