Visual Communication Support

We offer peer tutoring for all kinds of visual design projects resumes & portfolios
posters
presentation slides
thesis books
websites
exhibition pamphlets & wall text
product manuals
etc.
focused on core principles and skills. choosing and setting type
designing on a grid
creating hierarchy
selecting and applying color
incorporating images
understanding software programs
etc.


Our tutors are ready to help you:*

– Understand the basic principles of visual communication
– Consider your intended audience and purpose
– See your work from a viewer’s perspective
– Critique specific qualities and choices
– Find resources for self-study and practice

Tutors who are Graphic Design majors are ready to help you:*

– Get “insider” advice and strategies
– Learn to use programs like InDesign efficiently

*Keep in mind that we can only focus on one or two priorities in each appointment; follow-up visits are encouraged.
Illustration of hands holding pages of design samples and other hand pointing to one.
 

Visual Communication at RISD

People often expect an artist or designer to be adept at all kinds of visual composition — even though a Furniture or Textiles major may never get to take a Graphic Design course. You will want to have a clean and professional resume, a beautiful and user-friendly website, and attractive posters for shows and events. These demands are in fact universal; our screen-and-image-driven world requires us all to create and interpret both content and form.

You’ll have plenty of practice creating visual projects at RISD — and not just related to your work. You’ll create slides for class presentations and artist talks; you’ll make flyers and postcards for exhibitions; you’ll design business cards for portfolio review and design your own thesis book. Working with a tutor will allow you to do so with greater awareness, skill, and effectiveness.

Providing a kind of “free design consultancy” for both beginners and those with foundational knowledge, visual communication tutors share basic design principles, like establishing aesthetic, choosing and setting type, designing on a grid, creating image strategies, and selecting and applying color. They can also give critical feedback on particular projects and help with how-tos in various design programs. 

 
 

Design and writing may appear distinctive, but both concern the building and dissection (and often rebuilding) of structures. Having visual communication tutoring in the context of A&L reveals this intersection and has the potential to enhance one's thinking on both fronts — I can absolutely say it has done so for me.
— Joseph Allegro, BFA Graphic Design, 2018, Visual Comm. tutor