Level 0 Spatial Design at Plymouth College of Art
Fundamental to a spatial designer, is an understanding and an ability to read spaces. Within any design discipline the power to communicate with those coming into contact with your work is key, whether client or end user and spatial design is no different. Colour, materials, form, light and shadow can all determine the mood of a space and affect the emotive quality that people who come into contact with that space will absorb. The understanding of proportional representation, measurement, useful space and unnecessary clutter, cannot only enhance ergonomic functionality, but also affect our emotional state. Feelings of safety, excitement, quiet contemplation or distraction are due to the way a space creates a place. Spaces and their scale are part of our personal world, and this understanding is the essence of the programme. It offers the opportunity to develop aphysical awareness of space and place, the environment that surrounds us and the interaction that this will create.
The College’s Spatial Design programme has been developed to equip students with the foundations of good creative practice within the discipline of spatial design. Fundamental to the core skills, are project management and organisation, a clear understanding of problem solving and meeting the needs of a client brief, and the development of innovative solutions, conceptual and technical, to achieve professional outcome. Acquisition of these skills is supported often with ‘real’ world projects, established in partnership with industry, through the College’s commitment to making links and contacts with active regional and national companies. You will be encouraged to draw on your natural creative energy, to cultivate inventive solutions to broad design concepts, leading to refined and detailed presentations of ideas. In support of this, youwill have the opportunity to expand practical skills in craft based model making, design based drawing and conceptualising, through to the virtual world of digital graphics where design ideas can be presented to currentindustry standards. Employment opportunities in this field could include: landscape, urban re-generation, theatre, interior, film and television production, exhibition space, virtual reality, and museum design.
Spatial design involves students acquiring a diverse range of skills that will make you highly versatile designers capable of working in any area of this rapidly changing and evolving specialisms. This developing and changing nature is reflected in the flexibility and versatility of the programme. The initial grounding of conceptual design principles then follows through various kinds of project work, which enables you to gradually explore your own spatial interests. We expect the students to develop good overall design, model-making, visualisation and presentation skills, such that they could respond to many kinds of brief. This is in keeping with the experience of many designers who may turn their hand to design across far broader areas than they originally imagined.
Critical thinking and reflective self-awareness are embedded in practical, theoretical and presentational modules. Links are made between formal lectures in contextual studies and the themes explored in studio modules, encouraging ownership of personal direction in all aspects of study. This integrated approach is further supported by the direct involvement of theory staff in studio modules and vice versa. This is planned in a variety of learning and teaching settings:- group crits, seminars, set text readings, small group work focused around a common interest or area of investigation and through both formative and summative assessment. Thus, you are constructively challenged in both intellectual process and in your practical skills.
Of prime importance is the development of the individual creative approaches necessary to demonstrate the range of abilities that are required to succeed in this diverse industry. You will be given the opportunity to work on ‘live’ assignment briefs set by external clients throughout the programme, and this will be supported by specialist input and support from the staff team, visiting lecturers and industria field trips.
The College over many years has invested in substantial resources to support a well established and effective workshop structure. This offers excellent opportunities to work in media, film, metal, ceramics and wood, as well as textiles and other specialisms from other departments. In addition we have outstanding print and graphical support in traditional as well as digital based production techniques. Option modules enable students to follow one of these areas in detail, enhancing skills for model-making or visualisation.
Specialist lecturers introduce you to digital graphics applications enabling a sound understanding of computer aided design and the knowledge to present work through this powerful visual medium. Other specialist lecturers will, through contextual study, give a sound foundation to the history of culture and design relevant to the spatial context.
Spatial designers of the future will need to be creative vibrant practitioners in a developing discipline and national and international market. They must be able to deal with a varied range of working styles whether in the public or private sector. They will acquire specific design skills combined with flexibility, versatility and curiosity to keep skills knowledge and practice current communication and listening skills are also important as many design projects involve cross disciplinary work, or consultation with user groups. All these are fundamental themes of the FD Spatial Design award.
