Foundation Degree Spatial Design at Plymouth College of Art

Fundamental to a spatial designer is an ability to ‘read’ spaces. As designers we are interested in responding to a particular context or location, to reveal or enhance qualities about the locality. We are looking for essential qualities, what is distinctive about the space.

Our Foundation Degree in Spatial Design offers the opportunity to develop a physical and aesthetic understanding of the environment that surrounds us. The Foundation Degree programmes include principles of spatial organisation, experience with site analysis, meeting the needs of a client brief and developing creative solutions. You will gain confidence in presentation, and will develop a visual language of your own with the power to communicate effectively and professionally.

To develop your own visual language you are introduced to a number of skills. You will learn elements of design based drawing and free drawing, and how to make models in a variety of styles. You are tutored in the virtual world of visual graphics where design ideas can be shown as rendered 3D images, and as spatial animations.

During the first year of the Foundation Degree in Spatial Design you will gain a range of skills in technical and observational drawing and model-making. You learn principles of spatial organisation and site analysis, and put these to use responding to a variety of design briefs that introduce you to the issues in various areas of spatial design, Interior Exhibition, Performance and Production. Various computer programmes are taught through the course to enable you to produce beautiful and communicative design sheets, to plan designs in AutoCAD, and to model designs with the computer. The projects often relate to live briefs or involve working with a local organisations or companys. The presentations and group work will gradually give you the confidence to contribute to the teams that you are likely to join in employment. Computer tuition and cultural studies are part of the course, with their own assignments. At the end of the year you explore a related area of work and complete a work-based learning module.

During the second year of the Foundation Degree in Spatial Design you will extend your skills and professional approach. You start by researching a practice in one area more deeply, and are attached to a particular organisation. Following this you will develop a negotiated brief for a final major project, as a platform to display your skills. Further practice in model-making, the graphics and communication possibilities of design boards and presentations help to increase your confidence and understanding. Discussions and analysis of case study projects help to develop your own style and aesthetic. Computer tuition and cultural studies continue.

Career opportunities following these programmes include joining teams or bidding for freelance commissions in the following areas: landscape, urban re-generation, theatre, interior, film and TV design, exhibition, virtual reality, and museum design.

Placements - In the area of landscape design, we have had recent projects linking into Tamar Valley AONB and Plymouth City Council Development office. The workshops attached to the Theatre Royal – TR2 – provided a link to performance design. The City Museum and also the Aquarium provide links to public space design projects. Various national commercial firms provide opportunities for projects related to their particular area of design e.g. luxury yacht interiors, department store interiors.