Industrial Design and Art Center. Portfolio question.

[etchysketchy]

First of all I am hearing 2 sides to a story. One i heard from several saturday high students is that you don't really need to include stuff that's related to your major. Like for instance, if you are applying for product and you include projects that are trans related or entertainment related, then it is also okay, as long as you show similar rendering techniques and skills. What I hear from the counselors however, is that you really do need to include mostly things related to the major you are going into (3-4 actually). So who is correct? And has anyone gotten in with less than 3 projects (Im talkin about product or trans btw. And by projects I mean a set of renderings that includes all ur ideation for a topic)? What's the most people usually turn in to hav a comfortable chance of being accepted? I've got about 4 good projects right now but their a mixture of prod/trans/entertain so I'm kinda worried.

[poly_cube]

I would go with your counselor opinion. since you can't get any closer to the source than that. granted, there are some loop holes you can jump through to get in but I would mostly include stuff that's related to your major. If you want to go to trans then have the majority of work be trans- you can include maybe 1-2 product designs but don’t confuse them when they review your portfolio.

also, just read the school handbook on portfolio req.

[Tunes]

you probably already know that art center is quite rigorous and selective...\

I talked to a counselor from Art Center too, and she said they wanted to see students that are serious and know what they want to do. If you included things that werent much related, they might not feel you really want to go there.


im applying to their Industrial Design depart. as a highschool student and will be trying to focus my portfolio on my major as much as possible, with a few traditional pieces. in my opinion, i think those saturday class kids were trying to sabotage your chances so they would have less comptetition.

[Drunken Monkey]

great topic.

i am working on my trans portfolio right now - plan is to have 12 renderings of car concepts - 3-4 in photoshop rest in gouache. along with about 5-6 pieces that are figure/enterntainment.

sketchbook is half/half cars/enterntaintment - but most of it is syd mead lookish not character design.

do any attendees or graduates have any words of advice?

[Dionysusnyc]

I'm in the trans program, leaning towards the entertainment track. However, this is my second degree, and I've worked in new york as an industrial designer. The thing to keep in mind is that all three disciplines which have been mentioned have common elements in both approach and execution. Namely medium, perspective construction, aesthetic appeal, personal style, etc...
Include what demonstrates your skill range, a car is a product after all, and organic form whether it be flesh or sheet metal, is approached in a similar way in terms of drawing. Also submit a lot, I don't believe there are limits.

[Drunken Monkey]

Dionysusnyc, thanks for your toughts. Very helpful.