What can you tell me about it? It is the place that I'm probably going to college for graphic design, but it seems really expensive for a school that doesn't seem to be amazingly well acclaimed. I know it's more expensive because it's in the city, but is it worth it?
Comments
Originally posted by billybobsky
I walk past it every once in a while -- it seems to be a den of fornication and moral decrepitude...
Yea the School of The Art Institute of Chicago looks the same way but it's the best in the country.
Originally posted by billybobsky
I walk past it every once in a while -- it seems to be a den of fornication and moral decrepitude...
(Ast3r3x races to mailbox to submit application)
Originally posted by BuonRotto
The only people I know who go there graduated from the local community college. I can't say that's the general population, but the people I know are a little rough around the edges, not in terms of being "tough" but that they're not the creative or refined in their technical or conceptual skills, though they are rather motivated.
i can't speak specifically about that particular institution, but i have to agree with buonrotto in general. first off, let me just say that i've been a designer for over 6 years, most of which spent here in the dallas market. during that time, i've seen countless student portfolios from all sorts of kids coming out of all sorts of programs. of the 30 - 50 books i see a year, maybe a handful, if i'm lucky, are are worth a shit. of those, almost all will have come from a 4 year university with a solid and respected design school. occasionally i'll find a book from a lesser program, but that is rare and usually a testament to the kids desire to push beyond the bounds of what the his/her institution has to offer. i could be wrong but i have yet to see a very good book from someone coming from an art institute or the like. that's not to say they aren't out there, i just haven't seen one yet.
2 reason spring to mind as to why that is.
first, there tends to be a philosophical difference in how the two environments approach their educational programs. the institutes tend to focus on technical learning at the expense of creative and conceptual thought. a university setting will give you a more rounded education with less emphasis on the more technical aspect of design while pushing creative problem solving.
second, the quality of the instructors tends to greatly favor the universities. this is partly due to a perceived stigma associated with working at a non four year program, and money. universities, generally, just have more to give.
i could go on but it probably to me over 30 min to type this little bit out and i'm pooped.
Originally posted by running with scissors
i'd also like to add that some art institutes have a pretty good rep. someone above mentioned chi town, but san fran has got some good non traditional schools as well.
SF has the San Francisco Art Institue, one of the grand old art schools in America, but it is fine arts only, no design.
There is also the California College of Arts (formerly the California College of Arts and Crafts) which split off from the Art Institute during the Arts and Crafts movement.
It currently offers degrees in fine arts, design, and architecture, among other things. It has an excellent national reputation, and has been expanding rapidly of late.
Beware the Art Academy (of San Francisco), frequently confused with SFAI.
It has a rep as being something of a front for real estate acquisition, which is born out by seemingly every other building is SF having an "Art Acadamy" logo on it.
Originally posted by running with scissors
i'd also like to add that some art institutes have a pretty good rep. someone above mentioned chi town, but san fran has got some good non traditional schools as well.
There used to be a school called Chicago Art Institute (or something like that) which was not the same at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. So The School took them to court and made them change it. So you're right in that just because it has "Institute" in the name doesn't mean it's good or bad. You have to know the schools.
Originally posted by Scott
There used to be a school called Chicago Art Institute (or something like that) which was not the same at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. So The School took them to court and made them change it. So you're right in that just because it has "Institute" in the name doesn't mean it's good or bad. You have to know the schools.
True, that.
There is a kinda franchise operation collectively known as the "The Art Institutes" with about 35 locations nation wide. They are locally known as "The Art Institute of (your city here)".
Hence, there is an "Art Institute of San Francisco" that is routinely mistaken for "The San Francisco Art Institute", same as "Art Institute of Chicago" vs. "The School of the Art Institute of Chicago".
Irritating, because it causes people to confuse a fairly low grade design mill with some of the best art schools in the country.
Originally posted by Scott
The franchise one is now Illinois Institute of Art - Chicago.
Right, cause they got sued? For some reason the San Francisco Art Institute doesn't seem to be able to get them to change their name.
Problem is; I've looked at a lot of portfolios lately myself, and well, there's not a whole lot of anything good coming out, very good technical prowess, but all the good filters in the world, and kerned type, doesn't necessarily make it a good piece. So keep that in mind.
Just do a lot of research and ask yourself what you want to learn, and where you wanna go because if its the technical aspects of design, Ai all the way, but if you wanna develop your copy writing skills, or learn how to message/brand/sell an entire campaign/website/whatever look elsewhere if you're not comfortable with them.
Originally posted by Scott
...but it's the best in the country.
since when?
Originally posted by kraig911
I'm a production director for an ad agency here in austin, and I went to the art institute of dallas, and graduated 3 years back. Running with scissors makes some good points, its very technically based training, if you wanna know the ins and out of photoshop, then its good. If you wanna be a graphic designer eh its ok, but if you wanna go all the way and be say an art or creative director, you're going to have to find the creative skills yourself then, because they won't teach you that there hardly. When I went there it was their animation program, at the time there was no where in this grand "state" of texas to go for animation, and cali was waaay out of my "budget" me being from a poor west texas blue collar family. I hated school's as an institution by the way too, at the time, I didn't want to spend the next four years in school. I got a scholarship based on my portfolio, and I mean I haven't looked back since.
Problem is; I've looked at a lot of portfolios lately myself, and well, there's not a whole lot of anything good coming out, very good technical prowess, but all the good filters in the world, and kerned type, doesn't necessarily make it a good piece. So keep that in mind.
Just do a lot of research and ask yourself what you want to learn, and where you wanna go because if its the technical aspects of design, Ai all the way, but if you wanna develop your copy writing skills, or learn how to message/brand/sell an entire campaign/website/whatever look elsewhere if you're not comfortable with them.
It is hard to teach creativity though. it's usually somehting you have or don't. Granted... a more well rounded education tends to lead toward better creativity, however a friend of mine went to the art institute in Philadelphia.
Most people there are "rough" creatively, however there were some things he said blew him away. And my friend is damn impressive with his projects. But then again, all he needed was the technical know-how, he had the creativity.
the fact that i already had a piece of paper that said i was ed-u-ma-cated, gave me a bit more freedom than most in this regard. however, some schools may not be so flexible. i certainly wouldn't suggest not taking other unrelated courses outside of design as well. this is part of the strength of the four year program, helping you grow and become more rounded as an individual will pay dividends down the road.
Originally posted by FaydRautha
It is hard to teach creativity though. it's usually somehting you have or don't.
Meh, you can teach that too. Creativity is a process of inquisition. The hard part of creativity is framing the problem. Once you define the problem for yourself (this doesn't mean a practical problem solving or finding *the* soltion to it), you can approach it, and this reveals ideas to you. Those ideas guide the logic of the work, how it communicates. Once you know the problem, what seemed unexpected, arbitrary or irrational, aka "creative," should appear rational and required. Some are always going to be better than others at that osrt of thing, but it's something everyone can learn to a fair extent.
He is a well respected artist and very unusual . . . and that's saying alot for the crowd that I hang with . . . a buncha artists . .
The school seems to be a place that is rooted in formal concerns and the figure . . . pretty traditional
BUT, there is a great Video Artist that I think teaches there: Peter Rose!!
his work is awesome (some of it) and he is smart and a very nice guy too.
also, I thnk that Camille Paglia teaches there . . . I would love to take a seminar with her!!!
Originally posted by billybobsky
all art insitutes are dens of fornication and moral decrepitude...
Well... the best ones are