Publication Design

delivery and timing

We will meet once a week in person on Thursdays from 10:30 to 1:10 in room 1020 in the Art and Design Building. The classes are required and during our sessions we will discuss work, complete demos, and further our design knowledge. The class is scheduled to run for 15 weeks and you can expect to work for 6 hours outside of class each week.

prerequisites

AVT 311: Graphic Design Principles and Methods

course description

This course explores long-form print graphic design. While our focus will be on books and publications, the skills developed—creating engaging design within a branded, organized and inviting structure, presenting information in various content-appropriate formats, developing a visual identity and finding and creating effective imagery is also applicable to other common design tasks—annual reports, ad campaigns, business collateral, newspapers, websites, books, exhibition design, branding systems, and other commonly produced documents. Design is a tool for persuading, informing, and entertaining. In this class you will be required to do all three.

The primary intent of this course is the development of conceptual, typographical, and print design skills. It is a fundamental expectation that students will rise to the challenge of mastering the technical skills they need to achieve an effective and visually and typographically literate outcome. While learning software is not the goal of this class, increased software (or digital craft) skills are the byproduct of (and evidence for) a successful outcome.

objectives

content

This course consists of three projects, weekly prompts, and in class discussions and demos. The demos and discussions are to begin to familiarize students with specific concepts and ideas and the projects are a synthesis of the concepts and ideas we will cover. Weekly prompts will encourage you to critically engage with publication design you encounter outside of class.

projects

Project 1: Book Design

In collaboration with Stillhouse Press, students will create a design for a book to be published in the spring of 2026. Students will design the interior and exterior of the book using a provided manuscript.

Project 2: Editorial Feature

This project is one of the problems available for The Real Show 25. Students will design a cover and feature editorial layout for the article titled: Striving to Connect: Health Officials are raising alarms about loneliness and isolation. Can researchers identify what helps? in Science magazine.

Project 3: Events Calendar

Students will create a doubled sided mailer that showcase upcoming events for an arts based organization. The project will be a culmination of the skills and concepts you have learned throughout this course.

discussion of work

You will need to take an active role in both the presentation and discussion of your work. We will review projects in a variety of ways and you are expected to be able to talk and write about your own work and give feedback to your peers about their work. The ability to discuss your work and other student’s work is a very important part of your education at Mason. Use this class to improve on those skills.

communication

Your ability to communicate with me is of prime importance in this course. If you are going to be absent, late, or not have your work, it will be your best interest in communicating those things to me in advance. I do not need to know your reasons for being absent, late, or not having your work but I do need to know. A simple, short email will be fine.

The same goes for if you are struggling in this class or having other issues that are hindering your ability to complete work in this class. The more you keep me in the loop the more I can help you and adjust as needed.

attendance

Your attendance is tied to your engagement grade. Each class you miss will lower your engagement grade by 25 points unless you let me know you won't be in class and make an effort to cover what you missed in class. Each class you are late to will lower your engagement grade by 10 points unless you let me know. If you miss four or more classes you will automatically fail the class unless you have communicated with me prior to the fourth absence.

engagement

This course has an engagement policy instead of an attendance policy. Your engagement will affect your final grade (and, by extension, the quality of your work) for this course. You are expected to actively and passionately take part in this course in the following ways.

grading

Grades will be based on engagement (25%), and projects (75%).

engagement (25%)

This percentage will be based on your engagement in the class which is explained on above. Attend class and be engaged in this course and its content throughout the semester and this should be an easy 25%.

projects (75%)

Each project will generate two different grades. One grade will be based on your week to week process and the second grade will be based on the final submission. At the end of the semester you will have 6 total project grades that are all weighted equally for this 75%.

late work

Late work will be accepted for three weeks after a deadline with the exception of the final project which will be due at the end of the semester. There is a section on the rubrics showing how late work is factored into the assignment grade.

rubrics

Rubrics are used to grade exercises, projects, and checkpoints. The rubrics are in the PDF syllabus and tied to each submission on Canvas. The rubrics are here to allow you to understand how work is graded and to reference while working to self-evaluate.

weekly schedule

Class is on Thursdays from 10:30–1:10. Most days we will meet for the entire time but some weeks we will have individual meetings or end early. Some classes will be work days so make sure to bring things to work on each class. Unless otherwise specified, all work is due at the beginning of class.

A note—Time management is an important skill to master and should be worked on all your classes. Staying up all night working is not a badge of honor, it typically means you didn’t budget your time correctly. Staying up all night isn’t healthy and making sure you are keeping yourself healthy is your first priority.

semester schedule

The schedule below is outline of what we will be covering this spring. It is subject to additions, subtractions, and shifts.

week 1: 1/23

week 2: 1/30

week 3: 2/6

week 4: 2/13

week 5: 2/20

week 6: 2/27

week 7: 3/6

week 8: 3/13

week 9: 3/20

week 10: 3/27

week 11: 4/3

week 12: 4/10

week 13: 4/17

week 14: 4/24

week 15: 5/1

week 16: 5/8