Graphic Designer

What you'll learn

Course modules

1. 01

   What graphic design actually is (and isn't)

   Reframe design as decision-making, not decoration. The four jobs every artifact does (identify, inform, persuade, delight), the strategy→brand→design hierarchy, and how to read client briefs structurally instead of literally.

   ~150min
2. 02

   Color theory for working designers

   RGB, CMYK, and HSL — the three mental models you switch between fluently. Building palettes as systems (primary, secondary, neutrals, semantic, 9-step ramps), why saturation is the most useful lever, WCAG contrast as a floor, and international cultural color context.

   ~150min
3. 03

   Typography that earns its keep

   Type controls voice, hierarchy, rhythm, and density at once. Working taxonomy of serifs, sans, display, script, and mono; pairing on contrast not similarity; the numbers that matter (16px body, 1.4–1.6 leading, 50–75 char measure); and designing for the bottom of the reproduction quality range.

   ~150min
4. 04

   Composition, grids, and the architecture of the page

   Gestalt principles in practice (proximity, alignment, similarity, continuity, closure, figure-ground). Working grid systems (single, multi-column, modular, baseline, 12-column, 8-point). Hierarchy via the squint test, white space as an active material, and the seven composition templates that produce strong work.

   ~150min
5. 05

   Brand identity systems that survive contact with reality

   Logo vs brand vs identity — three different things, priced differently. The ten components of a real identity system, the logo design process from brief to delivery, the failure modes (committee logo, trend-chaser, illustrative, cliché, premature monogram), and how to deliver systems that small international businesses can actually use.

   ~150min
6. 06

   Print and digital — two crafts, one designer

   The physical and technical realities that govern each medium. Print fundamentals (paper stock, print method, color spec, bleed, resolution, color profile, fonts, PDF/X). Digital fundamentals (pixel density, file budgets, sRGB, web fonts, responsive, touch targets, accessibility). Working with New York printers, and why the same brand exists differently in RGB and CMYK.

   ~150min
7. 07

   Working with clients — the conversations that produce good work

   Discovery before quoting. Written proposals with scope, deliverables, revisions, and payment terms. Four pricing models (hourly, project, value-based, retainer) and the New York rate ladder. Presenting work with rationale, the common interpersonal traps and how to handle them, and getting paid globally.

   ~150min
8. 08

   The modern toolkit, and a full case study

   Figma, Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign — when to use which. The working pipeline from discovery to handoff, file management discipline that compounds over years, and a full integrated case study (Iya Risi international Kitchen, N2.5M brand identity in Ikoyi) applying every prior module.

   ~150min