Illustration
Florence
ENG
|
ITA
First Level Academic Diploma in Illustration
Language
English, Italian
Start date
October 2026
Frequency
Full time
Fruition
On campus
Duration
3 Years
Credits
180 CFA / ECTS
Course Coordination
Isabella Ahmadzadeh
The Bachelor of Arts in Illustration at IED Firenze guides students through a training path that combines creativity and technical skills for the creation of visual content across different editorial and digital contexts. The programme intertwines traditional drawing techniques – such as watercolour, pencils and acrylic – with digital practices, offering students a versatile and up-to-date skill set. In addition, the course introduces frame-by-frame animation, expanding expressive and creative possibilities. Students learn to develop images and visual narratives for books, magazines and comics, as well as for graphic studios and communication agencies, animation teams or in the visual development of video games.
Course structure and contents:
First Year: Provides a solid technical and artistic foundation to develop a personal graphic style and a visual vocabulary suitable for communication through images. Students learn the fundamentals of printmaking, narrative illustration and visual representation techniques. Photoshop and Illustrator are used to approach digital illustration and graphic design, while Toon Boom Harmony Pro is introduced for the first animations. Knowledge of human anatomy and spatial representation is acquired and integrated into the creation of both realistic and imaginative images, supported by theoretical subjects such as theory of perception and Gestalt psychology, art semiotics, contemporary art history, and the history of drawing and graphic design.
Second Year: Focuses on more complex projects aimed at editorial publications, comics and animation, including illustrated texts for children. Advanced digital graphics techniques and the foundations of motion graphics are introduced with After Effects and Harmony. Theoretical and cultural subjects such as film history, sociology of communication and phenomenology of contemporary arts provide critical and analytical tools to understand visual languages and the expressive contexts of illustrated imagery.
Third Year: Students develop a professional portfolio and engage in the production of professional projects in collaboration with companies and publishing houses. The programme focuses on advanced design of illustrated stories, tackling products such as graphic novels and picture books, and on the use of visual storytelling for advertising and multimedia communication. The thesis project represents a key educational milestone at the conclusion of the three-year programme, where students apply all the cultural, design and technical experience gained. Theses revolve around original illustration projects, ranging from traditional editorial design (graphic novels and picture books) to works combining illustration and animation, and proposals involving digital media and artistic experimentation, offering space for the exploration of new languages and techniques and for students’ personal aspirations.
Online and In-Person
Faculty
Course Coordinator
Isabella Ahmadzadeh
Art Director and Visual Designer
Bianca Sangalli Moretti
Illustrator and Art Director
Gianluca Patti
Creative designer
Martina Motzo
Illustrator
Veronica Caciolli
Art Historian, Curator and Professor
Camilla Mozzato
Curator
Laura Ottina
Professor
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