School of Design at George Brown College strives to be a leading design learning space to educate the next generation of industry professionals and prepare them for a competitive workforce. Our programs are based on real-world practice, state-of-the-art technology and facilities, and collaborative training. Our graduates are ready to take on the challenges of the contemporary world and develop solutions for a brighter future.
Giving Back: An interview with Paul Rowan, Co-Founder of Umbra, and George Brown Alumnus.
Dave Proctor - Producer and Audio Director, 13 AM Games
Digital Design – Game Design Program
Graduate 2015
“George Brown’s involvement in our project has been invaluable. We have an office because of them. They’ve helped us out with computers. They’ve given us a huge leg up. There’s a major benefit to being here.”
Savanna Jackson
Art & Design Foundation
Graduate, 2015
"George Brown helped me rediscover my love for hands-on art”
Completing a three-year university Bachelor of Science degree in Biology came with a dilemma; for Savanna. After spending the last five years of her life working towards a career in medicine, she felt a need to explore the one passion that she had no formal training in, but had always inspired her all life ’art’.
[Read Savanna Jackson’ story…..]
Vicky Little
Graduate, 2016 Graphic Design
Graduate, 2013 Art & Design Foundation
“I began to see the path I had chosen at George Brown was taking me places I hadn’t even realized existed”.
The journey Vicky took that led her to the School of Design at George Brown College started more than five years ago while she was studying Geographic Analysis at another university.
At first, she loved designing maps, but gradually came to realize that the data management part was leaving her unfulfilled and unhappy but not the design part.
Alumnus Kristina Camara
Graphic Design - G102
Graduated 2008
When it came time to decide whether or not to accept the job offer, Kristina Camara had what all job candidates would want: a choice. With job offers from multiple employers, Camara, then a fresh graduate of the Graphic Design program in George Brown’s School of Design, chose the offer that came with the most responsibility. She chose the best option to do what she had been trained for.
“I wouldn’t have had the confidence to take the job without my education and experience from my program at George Brown,” says Camara. “I really had to hit the ground running.”
As a Marketing Design and Project Coordinator for David C. Cook Distribution Canada, one of Canada’s largest publishing distributors, she is the point person for the marketing team when it comes to graphic design, whether it’s creating sales and marketing presentations for a new book or a whole line of books. “I’m responsible for taking the marketing strategy and bringing it to life through graphic design, which includes being a part of the thinking process as well as executing the design and production.”
Camara’s well thought out career choices began in high school.
“I took co-op in grade 11 but it was in teaching visual arts,” says Camara, who comes from a family of musicians, painters and visual artists. “But it wasn’t the career for me.” She did, however, enjoy a communications class and was told to consider graphic design, so decided to look into that.
“I researched three year programs and found George Brown’s to be the most unique because it allows people to graduate with a specific focus in an area of design, rather than just a generic one. The way the program is designed gives you the chance to discover yourself first, before choosing a specialization.”
The program’s strong connection with industry, including fulfilling the educational requirement for professional certification from the Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD), was also an important consideration for Camara. She entered and won an award in the RGD Student Awards competition in her final year.
“By third year I could design, but also knew why I was designing. Many of the instructors were also professionals in the field, so they really helped us understand how to apply what we were doing in the real world.” Just as important, however, was the supportive learning environment the instructors created. “My program was a good, close knit group of people and we had lots of opportunities to collaborate on projects. All the professors genuinely care about your portfolio and push you to do well.”
In her current job role, Camara has gone from printing one project for grading, to communicating with printers and suppliers to printing thousands of publications. Not all students initially choose design expecting a future job with such expansive responsibilities, but Camara credits George Brown with giving her the chance to make an informed decision.
“You have to make a choice about what you’re interested in at some point in your life, so better to do that in school than later when you’re in a job.”
Alumnus Paul Fleming
Graphic Design - G102
Graduated 1994
Since graduating from George Brown's Graphic Design program in 1994, Paul Fleming has witnessed major changes in the industry, particularly in how design has affected the explosive growth and development of new media.
" When I was at George Brown, the Internet as a commercial entity was still in its infancy," Paul remembers. "I had a couple of friends who were showing off their Internet connections at the time, and I was struck by how unintuitive and hard to use it was. Back then there were a lot of purely technical people involved - we were part of the first wave of people who recognized the Web as something that needed to be designed."
Shortly after graduation, Paul landed a job with a design firm and worked there for a number of years; drawing on the skills he learned at GBC and adapting them to the uncharted realm of the Web. Over the past decade, he and his contemporaries have been influential in moving design from something regarded by many companies as an afterthought, to its current position as a cornerstone of any good business. "Everything is designed now. It's becoming more and more prevalent that people look for and appreciate good design," he says.
Paul co-founded Red Communications in 1997 with business partner Curtis Achilles, another GBC Design Program grad. Red has won numerous awards and accolades, and has been featured in magazines around the world. "We called the company Red because red's the colour of passion, and I think that reflects how we feel about our work," explains Paul. "Our motto is "Design for the Greater Good" because we genuinely believe that good design goes beyond advertising - it's an important part of life in general, and we keep that in mind when working with our clients."
Paul has remained active within GBC over the years and was recently named Chair of the New Media advisory board for 2005.
" I've gone in as a guest speaker in the past, letting students know what they can expect when they enter the workforce," he says. "Now I'm looking to become more involved; to share my experiences and hopefully implement some of what I've learned into the course curriculum as well."
In addition to the extensive renovations to the facilities, Paul has seen George Brown's design curriculum evolve in response to the dramatic changes in the industry. "When I graduated, the program was a general graphic design program," he says. "Now there are five specialized branches and you take a lot of electives, which allows you to focus your education on what interests you most."
As for Red, the company has recently moved into a new studio on Queen Street West.
" Although most of our clients are Canadian, one of the great joys of our success has been meeting and working with people from all over the world," says Paul. "I've had conversations with students from places like Brazil, Cyprus, and Japan, and that in turn has influenced the work. One of the things that's most exciting about designing for the Internet is that we're developing brand new tools for communicating globally, in ways that are literally going to shape the future."
"Three amazing years at the School of Design has provided me with lifelong memories and friendships with both classmates and instructors. Not only did the School of Design teach me the necessary skills to become a graphic designer, they also facilitated a student portfolio review night with industry professionals. This event organized by the faculty provided me with the opportunity to meet with some leading designers in the community. Brad Usherwood, owner of Yield-ICA - a Toronto based multidisciplinary agency - felt that I had the skills to be an asset to him and his team of creatives. Following our end of year show, I was able to meet with the Yield-ICA creative team and was immediately offered a Junior Design position."
Jamie Mageau
Class of 2005
Junior Designer
"The School of Design did much more than prepare me for the job market.
It inspired me, educated me and gave me confidence in my abilities. The School's location - in the heart of the most multi-cultural city in the world - gave me the chance to meet and become friends with interesting and creative people from all over the globe. The School's greatest strength though is its teachers. They come from a wide variety of professional backgrounds, and are always willing to take time out for one-on-one discussions, extra help or even to go out for a drink after school. They became good friends and I have maintained contact with some of them even after graduating. As with any school, you will get out of it what you put into it, and you will leave inspired, confident and prepared for a career in design."
Mike Zikovitz
Class of 2003
Umbra
