Summer Course in Graphic Design and Portfolio - IED Firenze

Language

English

Start date

June 2026

Frequency

Full time

Fruition

On campus

Duration

3 Weeks

Course Coordination

Marco Innocenti

Price

2.800 €

Through lectures, case studies, labs and site visits, you will enhance your theoretical knowledge and technical skills, in order to complete a creative portfolio, developed during this three-week experience.

The course in Graphic Design and Portfolio offers you the possibility to challenge yourself with a creative programme that combines traditional lectures and project work to approach the basic tools and techniques of graphic and visual design. 

The following topics are discussed during the program: historical background of graphics and design, elements of visual communication, basic design, page layout, font and color, fundamentals of Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, image placement, save and exporting, development and update of a professional portfolio:

Basic Design: The course focuses on the basis of visual communication, giving an historical overview of graphics and communication, elements of semiotics and graphic perception, including the study of colour palette, families of fonts and typography.

VISUAL DESIGN LAB - Photoshop and Illustrator: The aim of this course is to enable you to use the essential graphic design softwares. You will learn how to use the tools necessary for graphic representations on different digital media. From the first steps in the world of vector graphics with the use of Illustrator, the program proceeds with Photoshop and the versatility of photo editing techniques. The learning-by-doing approach and the workshops will facilitate the comparison with your classmates, on various more and more concrete cases.

Information to decide

This course is meant to provide you with a hands-on introduction to graphic design principles and tools. Through theoretical lessons, the programme covers high-level concepts like layout, typography, and color. You will have the chance to get hands-on, using Illustrator to build a custom logo and practice the vector drawing techniques. Next, the course takes you into Photoshop, where you learn how to creatively adjust and retouch the images you will use in design projects. During the Final Project presentation, together with your fellows you will show the results of the work carried out through the course.

Summer course includes a strategic combination of theoretical lessons, case studies and workshops with industry professionals, as well as site visits to design studios and exhibitions. Site visits are an integral part of the program’s learning experience and are designed to complement what is acquired in the classroom as well as serve as an on-going orientation to the field.

This course meets from Monday to Friday on a full time basis (morning and afternoon) the course has a duration of 75 hours spread over 3 weeks.

The course is designed for aspiring designers who wish to acquire the fundamentals of graphic design in an intensive three-week program.This is an introductory course and no previous studies within the field are required. However we suggest students to familiarize themselves with the major themes that will be presented. 

Faculty

Course Coordinator

Marco Innocenti

Art Director

Laura Ottina

Professor    

Marco Peluso

Art Director & Brand Designer

Federico Cagnucci

Projects

Graphic Design and Visual Communication

Florence

Final projects / thesis projects
My portfolio: feel, travel, music

Graphic Design and Visual Communication

Florence

Final projects / thesis projects
My Portfolio

Graphic Design and Visual Communication

Florence

Final projects / thesis projects
An Afternoon Mapped in Florence

News

Art and design exhibition featuring two central rocks sewn with printed fabrics

23 October 2026

“Valor Ancestral: Latam Creative Talent 2026” makes a stop at IED Barcelona

Following its presentation at IED Madrid and ahead of its move to IED Kunsthal Bilbao, the latest edition of the international exhibition, an initiative promoted by IED since 2022, was on display to coincide with the Barcelona campus’s activities as part of Barcelona Design Week.

21 October 2026

IED Torino at Torino Art Week 2026

IED Torino at Torino Art Week with a series of collaborations and projects involving students from different courses, from Photography to Communication Design.

16 October 2026

From Zero to Future 2026

Opening of the Academic Year in Visual Arts and Communication with a Three-Day Workshop for New Students

14 October 2026

TypoLAB by Gonzalo Muñoz wins a LADAWARD 2026 Award

The project adds another international accolade to its list of achievements, winning in the Student–Digital category.

12 October 2026

Saioa Villa, alumni of IED Kunsthal Bilbao, presents Matterness at Basquerville Festival

The Official Undergraduate Degree in Graphic Design graduate was selected to take part in Harroby, the festival’s platform dedicated to the next generation of design professionals.

06 October 2026

Public Program IED.60, October 2026

This month, IED’s Public Program continues to take design beyond the classroom, creating opportunities for dialogue with audiences, cultural institutions, businesses and professional communities.

05 October 2026

IED Kunsthal Bilbao opens the 2026/27 Master and Postgraduate academic year with Toni Segarra

The day combined an institutional welcome for new students with an open, intergenerational conversation on creativity, talent, teamwork and the transformation of the profession.

02 October 2026

AQU Catalunya grants favourable accreditation to IED Barcelona’s Bachelor of Arts in Design

Once again, IED Barcelona has received a favourable report from the Catalan University Quality Assurance Agency (AQU Catalunya), certifying the quality of the Bachelor of Arts in Design (Título de Grado en Enseñanzas Artísticas Superiores de Diseño) delivered by the centre.

Two girls holding a paper program in front of a design festival poster

02 October 2026

Brut! 2026 brings two new creative voices from IED Barcelona to the stage

Visual Arts graduates Irina Kavtaradze and Kyla Henry took part in the event where leading design schools showcase their outstanding final degree projects, held on 1 and 2 October at Disseny Hub Barcelona.

Don't miss it

Exhibitions and Festival

23 October 2026 - 25 October 2026

Madrid

IED Madrid in the 7th Edition of Recreo Book Art Fair

The school is developing GRADA, a collaborative project with Recreo that transforms the fair’s auditorium into a space for meeting, play and participation

Exhibitions and Festival

29 October 2026 - 15 November 2026

Madrid

IED Madrid takes part in BID26 with a project exploring identity and identification systems

The project combines installations, interfaces and immersive experiences to reflect on depersonalisation, exclusion and the role of digital and social codes in shaping identity.

Exhibitions and Festival

06 November 2026 - 07 November 2026

Barcelona

Mira Digital Arts Festival 2026

IED Barcelona returns as an artistic partner and will take part in the digital arts and contemporary music festival with “Ananke: A Liturgy”, an interactive installation by Motion Graphics and Video alumna Malak Yahia.