Illustration

Illustration is the practice of creating images that communicate, explain, narrate or interpret, working at the intersection of visual art and communication design. Illustrators work across an extraordinary range of contexts: picture books and editorial illustration, graphic novels, advertising, packaging, medical and scientific visualisation, concept art, animation and surface pattern design are among the many fields in which the discipline operates. What unites them is the fundamental task of making ideas visible and accessible through drawn and crafted images, and the development of a distinctive visual style and storytelling sensibility.

At Middlesex University, this part-time studio-based programme places you in a specialist state-of-the-art learning environment. You will develop your skills as a professional illustrator across a range of media, with access to print, ceramics, photography, film and audio, three-dimensional making and digital printing facilities. The programme runs alongside the Graphic Design curriculum, and the cross-disciplinary connections between the two fields enrich your understanding of how image and design interact.

You will build a professional portfolio of work across different projects, media and contexts, developing both your creative range and your professional readiness for the illustration industry.

Illustration graduates go on to careers as editorial and book illustrators, concept artists, surface pattern designers, character designers for games and animation, graphic novelists, children's picture book illustrators, advertising illustrators and art directors. Many illustrators develop freelance practices, building client relationships over time across multiple sectors. Others work in animation studios, games companies, design agencies and publishing houses.

Further study in illustration, animation or graphic design is a natural option for those who wish to develop a specialist practice or a research dimension to their work.