Paula Scher Launches BBC Maestro Course on Graphic Design
The Pentagram partner teaches an online course that explores the techniques central to successful visual communication.
Photo by Pip Cowley.
Pentagram partner Paula Scher is the latest name to join BBC Maestro’s online platform of world-class experts. Her new course, Graphic Design, explores the techniques central to successful visual communication, with exclusive insight drawn from her own career. The 21 video lessons include From Sketch to Finish, Film Titles and Animation, Editorial Design, and Environmental Design.
“To be a successful graphic designer, you need to know how to see,” Paula says. “I’m going to help you do that.”
Across the the course, Paula explores the power of typography, logo creation and collaboration with clients. Lessons include interviews with Pentagram partners Michael Gericke and Emily Oberman, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at Paula’s personal case studies and approaches to tackling design problems across various platforms and mediums. Lessons are accompanied by pointers of what designers can follow up with, based on the learnings from the courses.
“In order to be a designer, you’ll need some sense of creativity, affinity for culture, graphic sensibility, and curiosity—the rest you’ll be able to learn on the way,” Paula says. “You don’t necessarily have to ‘know’ how to draw, (although everyone can draw) but you will need to be able to express your ideas and describe those ideas to others so they can see what you’re seeing.”
Paula’s course is available from 30 October via bbcmaestro.com.
“Learning from successful design examples is a necessity for all graphic designers, not an option,” she says. “However, the point is not to imitate. The point is to integrate the learning into your work. And the more informed you are by the influences you see, the more exciting your designs can be.”
The BBC Maestro platform features a series of extended, in-depth lessons filmed in 4K with an eclectic mix of prestigious experts and allows participants to explore new areas of learning from the comfort of their own home. The commercial online education platform developed and operated by Maestro Media Ltd offers individual courses or annual subscriptions across every BBC Maestro course.
Paula’s course is available here. Receive a 20 percent discount with the code OCTOBER20 before October 31.
