GCM Course Fair 2024

GCM 712 – Making an Impact: The Letterpress Revival

• Prerequisites: None
• Concentration: Publishing
• Location: Off-Campus (Howard Iron Works Museum (external link)  @ 800 Westgate Road, Oakville (external link)  - near GO Transit (external link)  Bronte Station)
• Instructor: Art Seto

Letterpress is making a comeback as an art form. Letterpress printing and finishing are seen as ways to enhance a printed product and create a tactile effect. Letterpress is usually used for smaller print runs to underline the exclusivity of the prints made by the letterpress process. Material requirements for letterpress print jobs are a part of this course, as well as how the choice of font is depending on the fonts available in the font class. Students will create hand-set letterpress pieces in this course.

 (PDF file) Letterpress Printing - Introduction to Course slides (PDF)

GCM 720 – Magazine Production and Publishing

• Prerequisites: GCM 230
• Concentration: Publishing
• Instructor: Christopher Smyth

Print and digital technology are changing the nature of magazine publishing. This course explores magazine design as well as technical specifications for magazine production and distribution. Students will learn about the business, design and manufacturing of magazines. With an emphasis on experiential learning, this project-focused class will culminate in students producing a short-run magazine.

GCM 738 – Photoshopped! The Art of Image Retouching

• Prerequisites: None
• Concentration: Publishing

Adobe Photoshop is very powerful image manipulation software. Colours can be corrected or modified completely and image elements can be added and removed. With proper technique, a retouched image will not only look good on screen, but will stand up to the requirements of the intended output process. Various image manipulation techniques are explored in this course with a strong emphasis on non-destructive editing. Technical requirements are a focus. Students will learn the importance of working with others in the production process to ensure consistent and predictable retouching.

GCM 746 – Sustainability in Print and Packaging

• Prerequisities: None
• Concentration: Leadership, Packaging or Publishing
  (can satisfy requirement of only one concentration)

Environmental sustainability is an essential consideration in today's graphic communications environment where business and technology decisions must take into account legal, ethical and technological issues influencing business strategies, materials and processes. Roles of government, manufacturers, clients and end users are examined with consideration of total product life cycle. Design and technologies to reduce environmental impact of graphic communications products, including packaging, are explored. An evidence-based approach is emphasized throughout, and students critically analyze claims for greenwashing.

GCM 754 – Sign and Display Graphics

• Prerequisites: None
• Concentration: Graphic Output
• Instructor: Chris Kular

Sign and display graphics can be printed in many different ways. Display graphics include also bus wraps and car wraps. Different print and ink technologies are used for sign and display graphics. Print technologies include, but are not limited to large format inkjet printing, screen printing and large format offset printing. Students will learn in this course not only about the printing of signs and displays but also about image requirements, image and print resolution, light fastness and other considerations for this interesting segment of the print industry.

GCM 806 – Advanced Typography

• Prerequisites: GCM 230
• Concentration: Graphic Output, Packaging
  or Publishing
  (can satisfy requirement of only one concentration)

Students in this advanced course pursue a deeper understanding of the history of typefaces and typeface design and application. From calligraphy to digital typeface design, students investigate the issues related to appropriate typeface design, and prepare their own typefaces.

GCM 810 – Creativity, Clients and Design

• Prerequisites: GCM 130
• Concentration: Graphic Output, Packaging
  or Publishing
  (can satisfy requirement of only one concentration)

Design is a human-centered and creative problem-solving process that poses unique management and communication challenges between designers, printers and clients. This course teaches design as a set of methods and mindsets that stimulate creativity and social imagination. Topics include establishing specifications and timelines, finding, hiring and working with designers, marketing and pricing of designs, speculative work, and preparing or responding to a design pitch. Contracts, copyright, ownership, accessibility and related legal issues are introduced.

GCM 816 – Sales and Customer Relationship Mgmt GCM

• Prerequisites: GCM 110
• Concentration: Leadership
• Instructor: Chris Kular

This course expands upon the introduction of the sales process in GCM 350, with a detailed examination of the role of the sales representative in the graphic communications industry. Topics include customer relationships, formulating a selective selling strategy, the nature and sources of product, customer and competitive knowledge, using the consultative selling process, overcoming objections and closing the sale. The course discusses how to extend the focus of the sales practice into self-presentation and selling oneself to further skills in communication and presentation.

GCM 824 – Digital Package Prototyping

• Prerequisites: GCM 130
• Concentration: Packaging

The pace of innovation in new consumer products means that packaging systems need to be nimbler than ever. In this course students will learn 2D and 3D package prototyping techniques which allow entrepreneurs to envision their product before it even exists! The course will focus on packaging design for start-ups in consumer goods such as food and wellness. Students will learn how to create a package design that responds to the unique needs of e-commerce and niche retail. Common package structures such as boxes, pouches, and labels will be explored. At the completion of the class students will have a technical understanding of how to provide clients with a digital rendition of their future product.

GCM 826 – Plastics and Packaging

• Prerequisites: GCM 240
• Concentration: Packaging
• Instructor: Dr. Ehsan Behzadfar

The low cost and versatility of plastics has made them popular in packaging applications. Nearly half of all packaging materials contain plastic. This course provides an overview of this important and sometimes controversial material. Students will learn about the science of plastics, review the common industrial processes used in the production of packaging products and explore the relationship between material properties and performance of packages and their processing. Lastly, the course will explore sustainability considerations and polymer innovations that improve environmental profiles for these important materials.

GCM 740 – Accessibility for Graphic Communications

• Prerequisites: None
• Concentration: Packaging or Publishing
  (can satisfy requirement of only one concentration)
• Instructor: Chris Kular
• Dates: July 15–26, 2024
• Schedule: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. (plus 1 - 4 p.m. on July 15 & 22)
• Course Delivery: On Campus/In-Person

This course introduces students to issues of accessibility affecting graphic communication pieces. Accessibility is increasingly important in the design, production and distribution of print and non-printed graphic media. By improving accessibility, overall design and readability are often enhanced. Students will learn about legal and ethical responsibilities around legibility, and will analyze pieces of work for accessibility. Students will produce printed and non-printed pieces using current tools and guidelines for accessible documents.

GCM 746 – Sustainability in Print and Packaging

• Prerequisities: None
• Concentration: Leadership, Packaging or Publishing
  (can satisfy requirement of only one concentration)
• Instructor: Dr. Ehsan Behzadfar
• Dates: July 29–August 9, 2024; Final Exam on August 12
• Schedule: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. (plus 1 - 4 p.m. on July 30 & 31, Aug 6 & 7)
• Course Delivery: On Campus/In-Person

Environmental sustainability is an essential consideration in today's graphic communications environment where business and technology decisions must take into account legal, ethical and technological issues influencing business strategies, materials and processes. Roles of government, manufacturers, clients and end users are examined with consideration of total product life cycle. Design and technologies to reduce environmental impact of graphic communications products, including packaging, are explored. An evidence-based approach is emphasized throughout, and students critically analyze claims for greenwashing.

GCM 470 –  Business Plan (fourth years only)

• Prerequisites: GCM 370, GCM 420, WKT 608
• Antirequisites: GCM 490

In this capstone course, teams of students develop a three-year business plan for a start-up company in the graphic communications industry. Students develop the core business strategy, including a feasibility assessment, competition analysis, marketing approach, HR and leadership plan, operations management, and financial plans. This course builds skills in team leadership and entrepreneurship, and encompasses strategic milestones throughout, concluding with a formal presentation for industry partners and a comprehensive written business plan.