feature / alumni / faculty / students / advertising / artcenter-extension / artcenter-at-night
March 30, 2017
Writer: Solvej Schou
Images courtesy of Z Gevorkian
[YOUR AD HERE]: ARTCENTER AT NIGHT’S INTRO TO ADVERTISING PREPARES STUDENTS FOR MUCH MORE
“Just do it.” “Think different.” “Because you’re worth it.” You know those famous marketing taglines. How about creating one of your own?
ArtCenter at Night's Introduction to Advertising course is the perfect fit for adults interested in the art and business of advertising. The jam-packed course explores brainstorming innovative marketing strategies for products and services, and bringing them to life through magazine, social media, video, digital and billboard campaigns.
“I’ve had students take my class, continue on to ArtCenter’s Advertising degree program, and then get jobs at good companies like Droga5, Wieden+Kennedy, Razorfish and Snapchat,” says ArtCenter alumnus Zohrab “Z” Gevorkian (BFA 05 Advertising), who has taught the class for 10 years. “They come to test the waters by taking the course, and see if advertising is what they want to do for the rest of their lives.”
Enthusiastic and passionate about design, Gevorkian—the freelance creative director of Midnight Oil, and whose past clients include Call of Duty, Land Rover and Samsung—treats his class as an actual ad agency, and his students as art directors.
Over 14 immersive weeks, students churn out ideas, write design briefs, create designs, get critiques and do a presentation every week.
“Students have a range of skill sets. Coming in, they may not know Photoshop, but they walk out with a portfolio of 15 pieces,” Gevorkian says. “I teach them how to draw, write out an idea and do a mood board. I teach them about typography. I want students to be problem solvers.”
“I’ve had students take my class, continue on to ArtCenter’s Advertising degree program, and get jobs at good companies like Droga5, Wieden+Kennedy and Snapchat."
Z Gevorkian
According to Gary Goldsmith, chair of ArtCenter’s Advertising Department, Gevorkian’s class is a fun, abbreviated version of the College’s undergraduate program, which he describes as “an intensive boot camp.”
“Many of our best students have come to us from Z’s class, because he’s prepared them so well for what our program is like,” Goldsmith adds. Gevorkian’s own ArtCenter instructors drilled into him that even though advertising can be competitive and tough, it’s also ripe with opportunities to execute boundary-pushing original ideas.
“What I’m trying not to do with my class is make creativity formulaic,” says Gevorkian. “Each student is allowed to refine his or her own creative process.”
ArtCenter at Extension (ACX) is ArtCenter College of Design’s continuing education program for busy adults, with more than 150 college-level courses and workshops in design and visual arts. ACN courses are designed to help students gain expertise to succeed in their careers, or take the next step in their educational goals.
