1. Portfolio Prep
Fall 2013
Instructor Contact:
Erin Roby, erin.a.roby@gmail.com
Introduction:
Artists and designers use portfolios to demonstrate to potential employers not only what they can do (skills and
knowledge), but how they think and how they develop their ideas to create a final design (process).
Course Overview & Assignments:
The objective of this course is quite literally to prepare you for ​Business IX: Portfolio​. My goal as your instructor is to
not only give you the tools you need to develop your NYFA portfolio, but also to demonstrate the importance of
cultivating a strong point­of­view and how to convey that point­of­view to potential employers.
Course Calendar
Weekly
Session #
Lecture Topic(s) Assignment(s)
1 (10.22) Portfolio Overview, Content Generation, & Documentation #1 and #2 out
2 (10.29) Visual Storytelling & Communication: Cultivating a strong
point­of­view
#1 due​, #3.1 & #3.2 out
3 (11.5) Layout, Typography & Portfolio Thumbnail Sketching #2 due, #3.1 due, ​#4 out
4 (11.12) Thumbnail Sketch Review & Discussion #3.2 due, #4 due
Course Policies: ​Work hard, be present, inquire.
Sign­off Requirements: ​Each student is allowed ​one​ free absence and ​must complete assignments #1 thru #3.2
before moving on to ​Business IX: Portfolio​.
Additional Adobe Instruction:​ Skip the overpriced Adobe books and get a subscription to Lynda.com! Lynda is home
to many of the exercise files utilized in this course as well as hundreds of videos on a number of subjects.

2. Assignment Key
Assignment # Summary
1 Portfolio Inventory: ​Create an personal inventory of NYFA projects completed/near completion
as well as an account of supporting materials/media necessary to execute portfolio section(s)
(sketches, photographs, scans).
2 Graphic Design Tearsheets: ​Explore your taste, or your client’s taste, in graphic design. Like the
Storyboard course, these tearsheets will serve as layout inspiration for the upcoming ​Business
IX: Portfolio ​course.
3.1 & 3.2 Content Generation: ​Choose one section of your portfolio to focus on prep/create content for
use in the upcoming ​Business IX: Portfolio​ course.
4 Thumbnail Sketches: ​Create rough thumbnail sketches of your portfolio section to use as a
basis for layout and design in ​Business IX: Portfolio​.
Suggested Readings...
...On graphic design:
Lupton, Ellen (2004).​ Thinking with Type​. New York, NY: Princeton Architectural Press.
Lupton, Ellen (2008). ​Indie Publishing​. New York, NY: Princeton Architectural Press.
...On being a successful creative:
Henry, Todd (2011). ​Accidental Creative: How to be brilliant at a moment’s notice​. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
...On standing out in a crowd:
Godin, Seth (2002). ​Purple Cow: Transform your business by being remarkable​. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
Godin, Seth (2010). ​Linchpin: Are you indispensable?​. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
Left: Portfolio except from David Steinhorst via International Talent Support.