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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Fundamentals of Graphic Design by California Institute of the Arts

4.8
stars
17,882 ratings

About the Course

Graphic Design is all around us! Words and pictures—the building blocks of graphic design—are the elements that carry the majority of the content in both the digital world and the printed world. As graphic design becomes more visible and prevalent in our lives, graphic design as a practice becomes more important in our culture. Through visual examples, this course will teach you the fundamental principles of graphic design: imagemaking, typography, composition, working with color and shape... foundational skills that are common in all areas of graphic design practice. I don't just want you to watch a video of someone talking about design, I want you to MAKE design! If you want to be a designer you have to be a maker and a communicator, so this course will offer you lots of opportunities to get your hands dirty with exercises and with more practical projects. At the end of this course you will have learned how to explore and investigate visual representation through a range of image-making techniques; understand basic principles of working with shape, color and pattern; been exposed to the language and skills of typography; and understand and have applied the principles of composition and visual contrast. If you complete the course, along with its optional (but highly recommended) briefs, you will have a core set of graphic design skills that you can apply to your own projects, or to more deeply investigate a specialized area of graphic design. To succeed in this course you will need access to a computer. You can complete this course without one but it will be tougher. Access to, and a beginner's level knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite programs, such as Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign will help you, especially if you want to complete the optional briefs....

Top reviews

AR

Apr 17, 2016

very good introductory course. i enjoyed the assignments, they are not overwhelming, easy to start, and the optional ones offer great opportunity to dig little deeper into graphic design fundamentals.

GA

Aug 20, 2018

Very interesting, I liked the format. Easy to follow, nice excercises. It's actually good to cover the basics of design, even if you are not an absolute beginner, and especially if you are self taught

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2151 - 2175 of 4,586 Reviews for Fundamentals of Graphic Design

By Rabeeta Z

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Apr 9, 2021

Its very informative and comprehensive. Really impressive instructor

By Kseniya Y

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Dec 18, 2020

Very helpful course if you want to understand what graphic design is

By Ayoub B

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Nov 10, 2020

Great teaching method,thanks a lot CalArts university and Coursera !

By Samson c

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Oct 4, 2020

it helps me to improve my knowledge in colors and shapes composition

By ASMA B

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Sep 5, 2020

thanks because you gives me the hand to discover the world of design

By Georgia B

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Aug 4, 2020

taught me alot about the basics of graphic design. Very fun projects

By Sarah V

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Jul 31, 2020

Instruction is great, projects are great, grading system is sub-par.

By Ahmed K R

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Jul 27, 2020

Loved This Course!! Thank You CAL ARTS For providing this content :D

By Soumik R

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Jul 19, 2020

I think this course was great to understand basics of graphic design

By Wai Y M (

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Jul 9, 2020

This is a great course if you want to start learning graphic design.

By Badhan P

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Jun 26, 2020

Very helping course for all and heartiest thanks to the instructors.

By Ebrima C

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Jun 21, 2020

This course has made me understand many things as a graphic designer

By Devanshi A G

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Jun 4, 2020

Excellent teaching. Great way to start the career in Graphic Designs

By Aman S

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May 14, 2020

This course gave me a much needed knowledge on designing aesthetics.

By Ayush A

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May 8, 2020

Exceptionally interesting and Great Assignments for your Development

By Margaret T

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Mar 25, 2020

The program is useful for me to get a taste of doing graphic design.

By Najwa P

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Jun 9, 2018

This is a very interesting and valuable course. I really enjoyed it!

By Catherine

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Jan 21, 2018

an efficient overview for a beginner without any relevant experience

By Gerald T

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Jul 19, 2017

Concise introduction to the basic building blocks of graphics design

By Óscar A M R

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Apr 29, 2017

Sencillo y fácil de entender. Lo mejor son los trabajos de práctica.

By Fergus N

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Jun 14, 2016

An excellent starting point for anyone interested in graphic design.

By Yuliya

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Mar 10, 2016

Very good. I am not major in graphic design, but I learn a lot here.

By AS

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Mar 6, 2016

It's a grear course site... I learn lot of new thing in this course.

By Marta M C

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Dec 6, 2015

Enjoying it! Thorough, effective, a great opportunity for beginners.

By Nigar A

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Nov 21, 2023

THANK YOU FOR ALL THE MATERIALS PROVIDED. ALL IS AT THE HIGH LEVEL.