MY OCAD VS SHERIDAN EXPERIENCE (PART 2)

OCAD DESIGN STRESSES DESIGN PRINCIPLES WHERE AS SHERIDAN ANIMATION STRESSES DRAWING TECHNIQUES

When comparing two institutions one must recognize that they are two different education centres with two entirely different approaches to education and learning. I wanted to stress this point because maintaining neutrality in my evaluation is paramount. I also do not want to misrepresent OCAD as a bad place for an fine art education.

I'm concerned with providing prospective fine art students with a very logical, supported, and reasonable argument when applying to art schools. However, please use your discretion when reading my material and take everything I say with a grain of salt because in no way am I a professional writer or artist but I am someone who believes in constant learning, taking chances, and helping others. I've spent time outside school working and I understand the real benefits of being in school.

OCAD and Sheridan College are both businesses--they won't give you what you want unless you give them money in return. So remember, you want to get the most 'bang for your buck' and that means picking a institution that has a good reputation and a good track record of students. I chose Sheridan because they had a good track record for a good education and getting a job. In this day-and-age you  want to feel good about the education you receive and above all gain confidence in your skills.

OCAD--MY PERSPECTIVE/OPINION

Honestly, OCAD can be really challenging and beneficial for a lot of people. Illustration Design and all the Design programs function as all-together one foundation year. Meaning everyone is essentially learning the same thing. It makes sure everyone is on the same track and gives everyone a good start within colour theory and design knowledge. Essentially, my problems with this is the fact that drawing practice and drawing technique isn't stressed in any of this, only design, colour theory, and some other stuff. I reiterate, we're comparing apples to oranges meaning we're comparing an institution that will stress DESIGN principles next to an institution that will stress DRAWING principles and highly skilled computer/technology techniques.

What did I not like about OCAD? I didn't find it very challenging and I wasn't learning a lot in my first year. I went to an art high school before hand so a lot of the courses I was taking was repeat. I didn't move into 2nd year OCAD because I didn't want to attain the Illustration Design degree they were offering. Honestly, even when I look back on it, its hard to specifically say what I didn't enjoy about but my experience as a whole wasn't what I was looking for. In terms of art, I realize now that drawing techniques interest me be more because I find it more practical where as design theory didn't interest me at all.

>COMPARISON/IDEAS/OPINIONS

I will provide a short comparison of what to expect at Sheridan Animation vs OCAD (First Year) and I'm going to focus on one course to keep things simple and I've chosen painting as my example:

Sheridan Animation Painting 1 is very similar to Design Stream Painting 1 in that you explore colour theory and colour harmony all the same. It's basic 1-2-3, ABC's of colour and painting. I found Sheridan Animation instructors and assignments more "to-the-point" in terms of colour theory and also the assignments a lot more challenging.  At OCAD, you have 1 month/ 3-4 assignments of doing gradient bars, colour tests and such. At Sheridan Animation, its one week to do your first assignment which is essentially all the color tests and gradient bars.

Year One - First Painting Assignment

OCAD Design Painting 1 (All Design Majors)

- Greyscale, 1 week to finish;
- next week Color scale, 1 week to finish
- next week Grey/Black and Color assignment, 1 week to finish
- Rough sketches
- Layout Outline
- Reference material

WHERE AS:

Sheridan Animation Painting 1

- One week to do all colour theory tests in one assignment;
- first major painting assignment the next class, due in 2 weeks
- One final painting 8x10"
- Rough sketches, Final Sketches
- Reference material

Sheridan Animation doesn't exactly assume you everything about colour theory but like most programs if you want to really learn more you must do some extra work on the side. Moreover,  you must do the work fast and learn it very quickly. So focusing on learning more color theory is important in the long-run but simply getting assignments done fast and doing it correctly are also important. This is similar to OCAD but I found in Sheridan Animation there is more work to be done in less time. Sheridan Animation doesn't want to waste your time and vice versa. These types of programs force students to get organized and really manage their time. Arguably, time-management is one of the most important skills coming out of first-year animation.

Year One - Mid-term Painting Assignment

OCAD Painting 1 hand-in

- Two final paintings 6x8"
- 6 design thumbnails
- 4 final sketches
- Line layout, overlay
- Reference materials

WHERE AS:

Sheridan Animation Painting 1 hand in: 

- Two final paintings 8x10"
- Two tonal paintings 6x8"
- 4 tonal sketches
- 6 design thumbnails
- Reference materials

With Sheridan (Animation), they hit you hard with projects and you gotta "learn-on-the-go". Sheridan Animation is all about actually getting out professional-looking material and lots of it. They have a much higher standard for a first year student. I will admit, sometimes the projects seem unfair because of the workload. In terms of the amount, I found Sheridan Animation more work compared to OCAD Design.

Honestly, I enjoy Sheridan a lot more. There's a much more genuine creative process happening that involves more dialogue with you and the teacher. Plan to do a lot of research. You must read up on stuff for your next painting, sketch out ideas, write down ideas, talk to other students about it, 10X the amount compared to OCAD. I didn't get the same vibe when I attended OCAD but then again, it could have changed since I had gone there.

CHOICES// OPPORTUNITY// PREPARING FOR SHERIDAN ANIMATION

BECOME A GOOD DRAWER/ IT'S ALL ABOUT HARDSKILLS

Sheridan Animation's first two years are all about drawing/technical skills. Although having digital animation skills are equally important--being a good artist is really where it counts. In my opinion, understanding how to draw characters and anatomy are paramount to really excelling at not only getting good grades but ultimately creating good material that industry professionals will eventually look at. 

Think about the fundamentals of drawing which are concepts like form, structure, rhythm, value (line quality) as your goals for learning. 

At Sheridan Animation, you have the opportunity to learn a lot of different technical skills in drawing, painting, digital programs, and storytelling, to name a few. There's a lot of information one must absorb year after year. It's the most mentally and physically challenging thing I've ever have to do simply because I've never pushed myself as hard as I do at Sheridan. I can't say for everyone I go to school with but I find the creative process exhilarating and enthralling. When it comes to making "choices", the question I find very challenging to answer is which skills should I focus my attention on. For example, should I produce more work digital work like digital paintings/environments or should I focus my attention on life-drawing? Opportunity for learning and growth is always on the horizon and in my case, as summer approaches, I will try to stay focused on gaining better technique.

As artists, we spend years of practice and training only to find that we've either learned a small amount or we've learned a lot--at least thats how I feel sometimes. When I look at my downtime which is off-school I'm thinking about where I should focus my efforts and learn more. Moreover, knowing where exactly to put your focus and plan your 'personal education' around is very important because it can mean the difference between getting a B+ and an A in the coming year. However, marks/grades aren't everything but gaining knowledge and insight is. Just plan to do a lot of work, an insane, unfair amount of work.

LIFE-DRAWING ALL THE TIME

The tough question which my summer begins and ends with is where should I focus my time? After a very long and exhausting first year there's only one thought that remains in my mind--what next? Essentially, my summer should be planned around getting prepared for next semester. I've been asking other students, my colleagues, about what they will be up to, asking my mentors, and second year students. After my 'research' I have planned to focus my attention mainly around life-drawing. Again, as competitive as Sheridan Animation is, this is the time where I can really put my mind to something and learn more. Getting better at life-drawing can prepare me for next semester and in addition simply keep me on track in terms of drawing skill. So I will be managing my time around life-drawing which is what I already do at school. I'll admit, keeping a balanced focus in art-work is important meaning 'doing a bit of everything'. I will argue that life-drawing combines it all while really focusing on the fundamentals of drawing at Sheridan Animation which are things like structure. Simply put, I want to be a better drawer and I feel my passion and direction in drawing can evolve through higher education in life-drawing. 

PLAN TO DRAW EVERYDAY, EVERYWHERE

My schedule will consist of doing life-drawing classes one to two times a week with "cafe sketches", which are known as quite literally doing sketches in a cafe, on the subway, or any casual setting with people. If I'm switching back and forth between hours of life-drawing and hours of short studies then I should see improvement. It's only upon weeks of life-drawing at school until I saw real breakthroughs occur but like most things in life, you need to stay committed and focused to reach a goal. 

LIFE-DRAWING COMBINES A LOT OF FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS/ TECHNIQUES

So what will you be learning? What are you doing already? Some people know a lot about characters. Do you draw a lot of fun little people or animals? Some individuals are more focused with life-drawing? I'll admit, some people like to do it all and some can manage their time around learning everything. For myself, I am trying to speed up my learning curve in life-drawing and focus on one thing as opposed to many things. Moreover, as my tutor puts it, life-drawing combines all drawing and process-oriented work thereby providing you with a lot of knowledge for skill that relates to all fundamental arts at Sheridan. For example, drawing squares, circles, simple lines, faces, are all consistent  with animation principles. Knowing how to do draw these things quickly, easily, accurately, are also important and there are so many reasons why life-drawing is important in the long run. So it's a process. Most of all, I wanted to say, when you really understand structure, composition, line quality and simply how to draw well you are really taking those first initial steps into a more professional level of artistry.

If you want my opinion, I would say to do life-drawing at least two times a week. If you want to get better quickly or at least get prepared for entering Sheridan Animation then plan to learn a lot of human anatomy. Remember, a strong foundation is important because often the slow and steady student will excel later in their career. 

Furthermore, I'll give you the best tip I have in terms of getting better in life-drawing. Buy this book: MICHAEL HAMPTON, FIGURE DRAWING - DESIGN AND INVENTION.

If you don't already know about this book then do a bit of research. Above all, this book provides you with all of the basic fundamentals and provides great illustrations and examples. Moreover, this book comes recommended by all of the life-drawing teachers and tutors in Sheridan Animation and is basically the best resource in drawing human anatomy. It's not required to be purchased for any course but I'd strongly suggest it for any student at any level. Many first year students in Sheridan Animation buy it and simply use it in and out of life-drawing class.