EX-STUDENTS IN 'ABOUT FACE' INSTALLATION AT NORTHERN EXPOSURE 2013

High Views – Art in Windows and Small Works Small Spaces are installation based projects of site specific artworks that engage with the High Street, Northcote precinct and aim to provoke, surprise and delight the viewer. The Northern Exposure Festival is an exciting feature on the High Street, Northcote calendar of events.

NCAT has had a long standing place in Northern Exposure's history. Traditionally we host an exhibition of artworks at the Northcote Town Hall and this year is no exception. In addition, this year we hosting a collaborative art project for an installation in a High Views window in High Street. This event called About Face, will be a collaboration between NCAT Folio Preparation and our ex students. Our course has been running for over 23 years and many of our ex students are leaders in the creative industries. This is a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with them and connect them with each other as well. Lets face it, we love networking!

The theme of this year's Northern Exposure Festival is Change, which fitted our idea of bringing together ex-students in an art work. The piece will be hung in the windows of one of the High St Northcote shopfronts (Yet to be announced which one). Our plan is to use coloured transparencies connected to make a screen of portraits.

Submissions are open to ex students to submit to us a fabulous photographic self portrait!... It can be as simple as using a Facebook profile pic or as complex as a full on photo shoot. 
Submitted pieces (to be printed by us) need to be:

• A4 size

• Self Portrait

• Reasonable resolution, pref 150 dpi.

• Image will be turned into a duotone on transparency film, so B&W is good - or just submit in colour & we can convert it.

• Jpg file named with your name

• emailed to NCATfoliopreparation@gmail.com

This is a great opportunity for ex students to add their involvement in an Art Installation to their CV/resume without all the palarva that usually goes with it! We do the work and they get their beautiful faces out there! Thanks go out to those who have already submitted portraits - They look great!
Submissions are also open to other artists wanting to participate in High Views or Small works, Small spaces. Northern Exposure opens on the evening of Friday 12th July and continues through to the 28th July - on High Street Northcote.

*All images ©NCAT & ©Northern Exposure Festival

FOLIO PREPARATION ONLINE SCHOOL REUNION

Calling all ex-NDS / Design Studies / NCAT Folio Preparation students!

We are holding an Online School Reunion across Twitter and Facebook this FRIDAY 7th JUNE, from 10am - 5pm.

No matter which year you graduated, we want to connect with you and hear YOUR stories about further study, starting your own business, or going into the creative arts industry. There are hundreds of you out there, maybe you even work with a fellow ex student... so tell us all about it!

On Twitter @ncatfolioprep, use the hashtag #NCATschoolreunion

On Facebook, share stories and links via wall posts on the NCAT Folio Preparation Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/NCATfolioprep
or share with the Folio Prep staff (the fb person) on https://www.facebook.com/NCATfoliopreparationalumni

This will be a great opportunity for you to network with other creatives across a range of fields, including Graphic Design, Illustration, Fashion, Fine Art, Photography and Animation, among others.

Looking forward to catching up with you!

The NCAT Folio Preparation Team

FORMER FOLIO PREPARATION STUDENT ANITA RYLEY NOW VICE PRESIDENT OF AGDA

Anita Ryley

Matthew McKenzie

Former NCAT Folio Preparation student, Anita Ryley (ne: McArthur) been appointed as the new Vice President of the Australian Graphic Design Association (AGDA). 

Anita completed Folio Preparation back in 1999 (when it was known as NDS) and went on to graduate from RMIT University's Communication Design (Then Graphic Design) in 2002, where she met future Seesaw Studio co-partner, Matthew McKenzie. 

Melbourne's Seesaw Studio, of which Anita is Creative Director & co-partner, has recently won in the Identity-Range of Implementation category for the Flinders Hotel project at the 2012 AGDA Australian Design Biennale. 

As Creative Director, Anita "brings a passion for brand development, collaboration and strategy to Seesaw’s creative solutions. She has been past judge of both the Fairfax Employment Marketing Awards and Brisbane Advertising and Design Club awards". She is also a guest writer for Desktop Mag. 

Seesaw Studio is the brand agency that has overseen the wonderful creative collaboration that is the rebranding of NCAT (Northern College of the Arts & Technology) - from initial concepts to full roll out. It has been an exciting project for us, seeing our former student manage a difficult project with maturity and creative insight. Swapping roles from student to creative director | from teacher to real-life client was inspiring! 

Congratulations to Anita & the team at Seesaw!

NCAT Rebrand 

NCAT Folio Preparation - Northern College of the Arts & Technology

http://ncat.vic.edu.au/

Images and quoted text reproduced with thanks to Seesaw Studio seesawstudio.com.au


 

AGIdeas INTERNATIONAL DESIGN FORUM

This year's AGIdeas International Design Forum proved to be as inspiring as ever. It is an awesome thing to see light bulbs go on for students who haven't previously been exposed to the richness and sheer breadth of the creative industries. And the brilliant AGIdeas books are extending the experience!

DIPPING YOUR TOE INTO THE WATER

To the disillusioned out there, change is possible! Every year we accept mature age students into the course from varied backgrounds who dream of fulfilling their creative urges but just don't know where to start. For them it is all about putting a toe in the water... building skills and confidence, getting exposed to the rich world of art & design and avoiding the preclusive costs of higher education.

At NCAT Folio Preparation we are working on a brand new course NCAT Create for those of you out there who want to build skills in art and or design but cannot currently afford the time to study full time. NCAT Create will be one or two semester based (14 weeks per semester), two days per week combining new media, drawing (optional) digital design & visual arts, with the option of doing the full 30 week Folio Preparation course down the track. 

Stay tuned people, change is possible!

Cake Decorating is actually pretty tricky!

At the NCAT Folio Preparation orientation week this year our new students discovered that cake decorating is an acquired skill! 

100% Success rate at NCAT Folio Preparation for the second year running!

We are thrilled to announce that 100% of our 2012 Folio Preparation students who went through the VTAC Tertiary/TAFE application process have been given first round offers! This follows last year's 100% success rate! Our students will be going on to highly diverse courses from within the Art and Design fields, which is really exciting to see. 

(Some) of the 2012 group.

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate them all on their hard work and persistence. Some students came to us unsure of their direction but they all left us confident, well skilled and really ready for Uni/TAFE. 

We wish them all well on their individual journeys and look forward to seeing them do wonderful things in the future! We will also enjoy seeing them return to NCAT to present at forums and Industry days in the coming years.

Here is a run down on the courses they have been accepted into!

Fine Art	Monash University
Fine Art (Expanded Studio Practice)	RMIT University
Animation (Fine Art)	VCA - University Of Melbourne
Games Design	RMIT University
Communication Design	Monash University
Textile Design	RMIT University
Interior Architecture	Monash University
Animation and Interactive Media	RMIT University
Arts	La Trobe University
Visual Communication Design	Deakin University
Games Design	RMIT University
Landscape Architecture	RMIT University
Photography and Photo Imaging	RMIT University TAFE
Visual Merchandising	Kangan TAFE
Sustainable Landscape Design	Swinburne TAFE
Illustration	NMIT
Fashion Design	Box Hill Institute of TAFE
Graphic Design	RMIT University TAFE
Photography and Photo-imaging	NMIT
Graphic Design	Victoria University
Graphic Design	NMIT
Beauty Therapy	Victoria University
Building Design	NMIT

Exciting Certificate IV in Design/Visual Arts Update for Folio Preparation

NCAT Folio Preparation is pleased to announce that we will be offering the updated CUV40311 Certificate IV in Design and CUV40111 Certificate IV in Visual Arts in 2013.

The qualifications have, after a long and exhaustive Extension to Scope process, been added by VRQA to our RTO's scope for 2013 and beyond.

Transitioning to new training packages is always a challenging process, but fortunately our staff are experienced curriculum writers and have risen to the challenge. The introduction of new units of competency has meant some exciting new adjustments to our curriculum delivery. We look forward to rolling out the package in 2013. Well done to all concerned!

SCRATCH THAT ITCH... APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR 2013!

It's that time of the year again. Folio Reviews are underway, final folios will be put together over the next few weeks and we are preparing for interviews for next year's NCAT Folio Preparation intake.

We would love ex students who follow our blog to think about anyone they may know who needs a year with us. We rely so heavily on word of mouth, and there is nothing quite like a recommendation from someone who has really seen the impact (first hand) that our Folio Preparation year can have.

So do you have a friend, cousin, little sibling, friend of the family, neighbour, mother, work mate, niece, nephew, father, or partner who "wants to do something in art & design but doesn't know how to get a folio together"?

We now offer Certificate IV in Design & Certificate IV in Visual Arts. Students who get a distinction grade average in the course can bypass the ATAR for Monash Uni courses. RMIT takes some of our students into second year of Visual Communication. Victoria University now has direct entry for NCAT students into Creative Industries. Monash Uni has 3 full NCAT Folio Preparation specific scholarships. We also offer the VCAL Senior Extension-Folio Enhancement that enables students to get a 10% bonus on their ATAR (ENTER) score. Information about the course can be found here.

We readily take on mature age students who are looking for a career change or who just want to scratch that creative "itch". We also cater for country students. Applicants must have successfully gained their VCE or VCAL Senior or equivalent higher education qualifications.

So... if you know of anyone, direct them to the NCAT Folio Preparation Course blog for information
& an application form. NCAT Folio Preparation - How do I apply? Alternatively, check out the College website: ncat.vic.edu.au or they can call us direct on 03 9478 1333 

NCAT FOLIO PREPARATION INFORMATION EVENING TUES 16TH OCT 7:30PM

If you are considering enrolling into our folio preparation course next year - or know someone else who may be - we would recommend that you come to our information evening tomorrow night, where you can get all the details on the courses offered. See you there!

THE NCAT COMMUNITY OPEN DAY

Portrait Drawing Workshop

The NCAT Folio Preparation staff were thrilled with the response to our recent community open day.

It was fantastic to see so many current and past students support us by coming along and participating in our creative workshops, which included portrait drawing sessions where anyone could pose (or draw), an illustration wall and badge making. 

Sample folios from past students were on display as was an exhibition of current and past NCAT Folio Preparation student work.

A section of the Illustration Wall in progress

We loved being in the new Trade Training Centre for the day and really enjoyed putting our creative touch to it! What an extraordinary space it is.

Visual Arts Badge Making workshop

The day gave the community the chance to have a look inside the TTC and see what goes on inside a Senior Secondary College that specializes in both the Arts & Technologies. It became clear that the mix of Arts & Technology is a good one when the community saw what amazing facilities are available, including laser & vinyl cutters, CNC cutter, instrument making facilities to name a few.

Folio Preparation's infiltration of the NCAT Trade Training Centre

  

Ex Folio Prep Students Tyson Love, Giosuè Prochilo & Stuart Ford

At NCAT Folio Preparation we are only just beginning to get our heads around the possibilities such great resources allow. Exciting times are ahead!

Our special thanks go out to the amazing Liz Shaw whose Events Management skills were incredible. Where does that girl get her energy?

Event Organizer Liz Shaw
with NCAT Principal Raffaela Galati Brown