2020/21 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

DESN1633 Colour and the Design Process

10 creditsClass Size: 96

Module manager: Dr Phil Henry
Email: p.m.henry@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2020/21

This module is approved as a discovery module

Module summary

Colour is important to the decisions that consumers make about which products to buy. - Almost everything that is designed and manufactured is coloured; but what is colour?- Is it a physical property or does it exist only as a sensation? - Is white a colour? This module will introduce the basic properties of colour and its representation and communication. The importance of colour in the design process will be explored through a study of colour reproduction in monitors and printers. A basic introduction will be given to colour measurement.

Objectives

The key module objectives are to provide the abilities to critically understand successful colour combinations, apply a methodological approach to creating original colour palettes and to have a good insight into the challenges relating to successfully communication colour accurately.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module students will have:
* An understanding of the nature of colour and way in which colour is formed in the human brain.
* An awareness of the technology of colour image reproduction and an understanding of how to use this technology in the design process.
* An appreciation of how colour is used in advertising and web-design, and how colour images are reproduced using printers and monitors.
* An understanding of various methods of colour specification, and awareness of the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Skills outcomes
The successful use of colour can often appear to be based on intuitive abilities; this module will support students developing ability to recognise and apply colour harmony theory to a specific creative challenge with a considered and analytical approach. As the module progresses technical colour challenge will be introduce alongside an evaluation of the strengths and weakness of a range of physical and digital design solutions and process.

Syllabus

Almost everything that is designed and manufactured is coloured.

- What is colour?
- Is it a physical property or does it exist only as a sensation?

This module will introduce the basic properties of colour and its representation in the human brain. The importance of colour in the design process will be explored through a study of colour in advertising, colour psychology, colour on the internet and colour reproduction in monitors and printers.

A basic and easy-to-understand introduction will be given to colour measurement.

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Lecture	9	1.00	9.00
Seminar	1	1.00	1.00
Private study hours			90.00
Total Contact hours			10.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			100.00

Private study

- Reading for lectures: 9 x 2 hours
- Preparation for seminar: 1 x 3 hours
- Preparation for essays and colour design tasks: 63 hours

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

The module is supported throughout via the VLE which contains weekly reading material, Lecture PowerPoints and Web links where apocopate. This is in addition to a class blog which is used as a means of facilitating questions and answers regarding both taught material and any issues relating to the assessments. This resource allows all registered students to engage directly with the module leader outside of the taught sessions and all students to have access to the information that arises at their own convenience. Short multiple choice questions are presented at appropriate junctions as a means of highlighting key issues and topic pertinent to the set essays. Generic and specific written feedback is provided for the essays.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	1,000 words	33.00
Essay	2,000 words	67.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 10/08/2020 08:35:02

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