Final Post | Tocci

I've been dreading this class since I got accepted to Newhouse over a year ago. I have never been good at design, and I automatically hate things I'm not good at. Since I am not really a visual thinker, I concentrated on words all throughout high school and always let other people handle the design. But I knew I wouldn't be able to get away with that in this class, and I was not happy about it.

Although I am still not good at design, I learned way more than I ever expected to. When Prof. Taylor said that this class would change the way we see the world at the beginning of the semester, I remember trying not to roll my eyes. But, she proved me wrong (something I rarely admit!). I notice color, I notice visual hierarchy, I notice all the subtle design elements I never knew existed before the beginning of the semester without even meaning to. I felt like my own projects never measured up to my classmates', but one of my favorite parts of the class was seeing their work. Everyone had such different, unique ideas and designs, and it was awesome to think that some of them will be designing out in the real world one day.

I also gained HUGE respect for graphic designers and learned so much about the design processes and what it takes to make even the simplest design work. Now, I feel like I can communicate with designers and speak their language. I'm a magazine major, and I understand that without strong design my words will never be read. I feel like I can collaborate effectively with designers now, whereas prior to taking this class my only design suggestion would have been to throw pretty colors on a page. Although I have never been destined for an artistic career (and I have the kindergarten finger paintings to prove it), this class has increased my visual awareness a thousandfold and given me the confidence to understand and speak the foreign language of graphic design.