Illustration BA(Hons)

Why study with us?

• Brighton is a vibrant city, packed with galleries and home to many creative and digital companies. It also hosts England’s leading arts festival and an annual digital media festival.

• Contributors to the course are legendary and include Raymond Briggs, Quentin Blake, Emily Gravett, John Vernon Lord, George Hardie and Jasper Goodall.

• You’ll benefit from dedicated studio space, small year groups and close links between Illustration and Graphic Design disciplines, giving you the best platform for sharing knowledge and personal development.

• You’ll be taught by accomplished illustrators; they create a stimulating learning environment while keeping up ambitious research, professional practice and participating in major exhibitions.

• We are one of the few places in the country where you can study Illustration and receive tuition in dedicated workshops for both letterpress and book arts. You’ll also have access to one of the country’s best-stocked specialist art and design libraries and our internationally significant Design Archives. 

• Students on recent optional study trips have visited New York, San Francisco, Berlin and Amsterdam and enjoyed a full programme of studio and gallery visits.

• We’ll help you develop as an illustrator and make the kind of contacts to launch your career.

2018 graduate Jade Delmage discusses her experience of studying Illustration at Brighton.

Year 1

Year 1 introduces you to the basic concepts of visual communication in illustration. Through a series of studio-based projects and workshops in observational and life drawing, photography and book arts, you will begin to develop your own visual language.

Modules

• Introduction to Visual Communication: Orientation and Exploration

  This module provides an introduction to the key concepts and practices of visual communication.

  It's a dynamic and mobile subject that has been fundamental in shaping modern global culture and continues to profoundly influence the way we perceive, understand and navigate the world.

  You will be introduced to the history, practices and techniques that inform visual communication, exploring experimentation, creativity and design approaches you will be asked to critically reflect on your practice through guided and independent study.

• The Practice of Visual Communication: Investigation and Application

  Visual communication is a diverse and constantly reformulating practice that uses a wide range of technical processes to engage with audiences. This module introduces you to a range of working methods, practices and techniques.

  You will explore a range of technical skills and you will be encouraged to investigate new approaches, combine existing techniques and explore traditional methods to develop innovative outputs.

• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Media, Messages and Meaning in Illustration

  In this module you will examine, define and apply concepts, practices and debates that inform visual communication.

  You will explore the theoretical concepts and contemporary and historical approaches that have been used to communicate messages and meaning and apply these into practice by experimenting with media, contexts, techniques and processes. Through focused analysis you will critically reflect on the ongoing debate and reformulation of visual communication as a subject area.

• Developing a Visual Language: Personal Project

  In this module you will explore visual communication and your relationship to it by constructing a self-directed project.

  Visual communication encourages diverse approaches to professional practice and the development of a personal visual language. As you begin to identify and locate your practice within a framework of critical debate and ethical considerations you will have the opportunity to experiment with concepts, define approaches and critically reflect on them with an analysis of contemporary practice.

Making sure that what you learn with us is relevant, up to date and what employers are looking for is our priority, so courses are reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis. When you have applied to us, you’ll be told about any new developments through our applicant portal.

Year 2

Year 2 introduces the key concepts of sequential communication with a focus on self-initiated, collaborative, experimental and independent ways of working. You will also begin to explore the creative industries via a personal and professional development programme. In years 2 and 3 you will also attend a weekly professional practice lecture by guest speakers working within the industry.

Modules

• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Audiences and Contexts
• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Contemporary Practice
• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Context of Personal Practice in Illustration
• Option module

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.

In spring 2015, second-year students had the chance to rework vintage Ladybird book art to support the Ladybird by Design exhibition at the De La Warr Pavilion. May Kindred-Boothby (work pictured), Jess Underwood, Alison Friel, Tom Harding and Juliet Klottrup were each given a classic Ladybird book and asked to respond to it in the form of a drawing, collage, animation or film.

Final year

In year 3 you build upon the creative and analytical abilities you have developed. Teaching encourages greater personal development as you move towards a more self-directed programme of study. You will work on set and self-initiated projects, prestigious competition briefs and live industry projects, while establishing professional practice links.

Modules

• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Articulation of Illustration
• The Theories and Practice of Visual Communication: Independent Practice in Illustration

Staff profile

Roderick Mills, course leader

Roderick Mills is an award-winning illustrator and film-maker. He has worked across most areas of illustration including editorial, publishing, corporate literature, web design, advertising, exhibition design and animation. In 2011, Roderick joined the Board of Directors of the Association of Illustrators and became Deputy Chairman.

Student views 

Dayna Murphy, 2018 graduate

“I particularly like the way that Illustration as a course is run, the structure allows a lot of freedom with the right amount of guidance. I have developed a lot as a visual communicator during my time in Brighton, being in such a creative city has been inspiring and I’m sad to be leaving it!”

Maya Doyle Leal, 2018 graduate

"I really loved being part of this course. The tutors and staff are now a part of my little “illustration family” and I couldn’t be more grateful for all of their support. They have been serious and tough but extremely motivating.

"Looking back, I see that it was so important to have the two first years to really explore and experiment with different processes and be playful in my work. I learnt how to work with other artists and had the time and opportunity to make mistakes and figure out what I do and don’t like in the practice. It was so helpful to have experienced that before entering my third year and really developing my own visual language and analysing my own work and subjects.

"One of the most important things that I learned during my time at Brighton was to be true to myself as an artist and to value my own opinions and interests."

Huw Roberts, 2018 graduate

"The course has a very well-designed crescendo over the three years. First year feels a bit like a continuation of a foundation diploma. Second year is all about experimentation and trying things you wouldn’t usually do. And third year is a big step up, getting you in gear for professional illustration or creative work after graduation.

"Aside from maturing into a proper illustrator, making lots of friends and having loads of fun, I have learnt to respond to art and illustration in a much more considered way.

"One of the things you learn as you progress as a visual communicator is that your work doesn’t have to be qualified by a high level of skill or craftsmanship for it to be good. For your work to be successful it needs to communicate well. A drawing can have taken many days to make and be a beautiful object, but if its purpose was to communicate something and it fails then it is unsuccessful. When making any decisions with my work, I always consider the Who? What? When? Where? then I ask myself whether someone who has no idea about the context of the work would be able to understand it."

2018 graduate Sara Lavelle talks about her experiences of the course as well as her exchange with Minneapolis College of Art and Design and how this influenced her work.

Facilities

• Dedicated studio space
• Central media centre with computing facilities specific to the needs of designers and illustrators
• Specialist equipment including materials for sound, film and photography
• One of the country's best-stocked specialist art and design libraries
• Internationally important Design Archives include a wealth of work in graphic design and illustration
• Dedicated technical workshops in letterpress printing and book arts

The University of Brighton Design Archives

International requirements and visas

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visas and immigration advice

Portfolio and interview advice 

Applying for 2019

Read our advice on how to submit a portfolio if you are applying during Clearing

Applying for a place in 2020?
Pre-selection portfolio – online portfolio of 15–20 images. We are looking for evidence of ideas in any format (sketchbooks, layout books etc), backed up by a broad range of skills showing how you generate and develop ideas, and that you are passionate and inquisitive about the subject.

• Drawing is essential in all its forms.
• Narrative, storytelling – these should also be key components in your work.
• Key words to think about are: invention, imagination, expression, exploration.

At interview
You need to be highly motivated and well prepared as we normally interview over 170 applicants. In the interviews we expect applicants to show evidence of:

• drawing ability and use of sketch books or worksheets
• imagination and visual awareness through enthusiasm for images (collected work)
• evidence of independence and initiative in work produced
• being able to articulate ideas and problem solve
• have an understanding of the historical contexts of subjects
• openness to having work critically judged and developing critical judgment
• varied interests in general subjects
• skills in making objects.

We are not looking for highly finished work. The portfolio, ideally in chronological order, should show a broad range of work both successful and unsuccessful.

Course fees

What's included

You may have to pay additional costs during your studies. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. A summary of the costs that you may be expected to pay, and what is included, whilst studying a course in the School of Art are listed here.

• For most courses you will need to budget for the cost of specialist materials, equipment and printing and are likely to spend between £50–£300 per year.
• Costs in your final year of study are very likely to be higher than in earlier years as you bring together your final body of work and portfolio, and you may need to budget between £200 and £1,000.
• For some courses you may also need to budget up to £100 for specialist personal protective clothing which, with care, will last for the whole of your course and beyond.
• For most courses you will have the opportunity to attend field trips and off-site visits, for example to galleries, exhibitions and studios both in the UK and overseas. These are optional and are not required to pass your course. The amount spent would be based on location and number of trips taken, and typically range between £100 and £700 across the duration of your course.
• You will have access to computers and necessary software at City campus and at other locations across the university. However, many students choose to buy their own hardware – usually a laptop, software and accessories. The amount spent will depend on your individual choices but this expenditure is not essential to pass any of our courses.
• Course books and a wide range of magazines and journals are available in the university libraries. You do not need to have your own copies, but if you wish to, you should budget up to £200 over your course to buy them.
• For courses in which there is an optional placement year, you will need to budget for living costs (rent, food, travel etc) in that city/country, as if you were on site at the university.

You can chat with our enquiries team through the Stay in touch panel at the end of this page if you require further information. Or check our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as more information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status

Info

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2020–21.

Further tuition fees are payable for each subsequent year of study and are subject to an annual increase of no more than 5% or RPI (whichever is the greater). The annual increase for UK/EU students, who are subject to regulated fees, will increase no more than the statutory maximum fee.

You can find out more about our fees in the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full-time or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

Local area

Campus where this course is taught

Accommodation

Maps

Accommodation

University building

City campus map