Katherine Franz Becomes More Proficient with Graphics Programs During Internship

from FSU Art BA ’21 Katherine Franz:

My internship was not your normal internship. It was set up as more of a direct individual study kind of situation so that I could work toward opening my own business. Mr. Kevin Curry is a digital foundations instructor at Florida State University and the purpose of this internship was for me to hone my skills and become more proficient with graphics programs. I had intended to learn more about the Adobe programs but most of what I ended up experimenting with were design apps available on my iPad. This was due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic affecting our society. I did not have the access to Florida States computers and programs I would have had the pandemic not been a factor.

Considering, I was able to achieve all my goals and then some by using and learning the applications available on my iPad. The main one I have been using is Photofox. It allows me to layer my images and edit them similarly to photoshop. I do feel that Photofox is a bit more user-friendly than photoshop, especially on the iPad, due to the nature of it being an app intended for nonprofessionals. I would still like to learn the Adobe programs at some point since they are the industry standard, but I have learned that there are true viable alternatives that will work just as well for my purposes. Some of the challenges faced were those of access to programs and finding ones that would do what I needed them to without sacrificing image quality. Luckily the application I found, Photofox, will handle all I need it to. The most memorable and enjoyable part of this experience was getting a taste of working as an independent artist. I now have the confidence that I will be able to work and be successful as an independent artist upon graduation. I have discovered my process and have developed my skills so that my work is able to elicit emotional responses from those that I have let in to see my pieces.

I would highly recommend to anyone working with Mr. Kevin Curry. He is very knowledgeable of the digital arts and supportive of his students. He gives very useful critiques with notes that can actually be acted upon for the betterment of the final product. If Mr. Curry is not available for a direct individual study or an internship you should take his Digital Foundations course. He gives a great introduction to the graphics programs within that course.