Facilities
The school of Visual Communication Design moved from the Art Building into its new home in Taylor Hall in 2017. This historic building has been transformed to become the home of Comm Studies and VCD. The renovated Taylor Hall features a signature gallery, photography studios and the VCD Creative Lab. The fourth floor of Taylor Hall showcases our brightly lit open plan classrooms, design studios and the best view on campus.
Glyphix Studio
Glyphix Studio is a classroom program that allows students within the School of Visual Communication Design the opportunity to engage in thoughtful client-based and self-guided investigation into design problems. For over forty years, Glyphix Studio has paired some of the best and brightest from Kent State University with local clients in the goal of helping to innovate the city of Kent, Ohio and beyond. Each member of our studio participates in an authentic and collaborative experience that is tailored to the respective ambitions of their creative careers. We utilize research, exploration, and a diverse set of visual design skills to solve problems.
The student staffed studio was one of the first such programs in the U.S. and the prototype for many student work-study design groups now existing on university campuses. With over 80 awards and more than 400 program alumni, Glyphix Studio has made its mark as a holistically unique space to create, inspire and excel.
Taylor Hall Gallery
The Taylor Hall Gallery is a beautiful 1,100 square foot exhibition space featuring high ceilings, a customizable floor pan and professional quality lighting. The gallery exhibits work from students, faculty, alumni and designers in the Northeast Ohio community. The mission of the gallery is to inspire students by exposing them to excellent work in their field and to attract new students by showcasing the work produced by faculty, alumni and students.
If you have questions or ideas for an exhibition, please email Christine Zuercher at czuerche@kent.edu.
VCD Photography Studios
The School of Visual Communication Design offers four photography studios on the 3rd floor of Taylor Hall available for all VCD students to use. The two 1,200 square foot and two 500 square foot studios contain top-of-the-line camera equipment, including brand new state-of-the-art continuous-source LED lights and Dynalite studio strobe kits. Our studios are designed to accommodate diverse content and working styles, from magazine or fashion shoots to art images, studio portraits, event photography and candid storytelling.
VCD students can make photo studio reservations online at www.cheqroom.com. Use your Flashline info to login.
The photo studios are currently available
Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Saturday: 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
VCD Creative Lab
All VCD students have access to the Visual Communication Design Creative Lab which is located in 321 Taylor Hall and includes 6 large format inkjet printers, high-quality flatbed scanners, a brand new laser jet printer and a 3D printer. Students may also utilize our new online reservation system for free rentals of camera bodies, lenses, tripods, GoPros, Wacom tablets, iPads, various strobe lighting kits and more.
VCD students can reserve equipment at www.cheqroom.com using their Flashline info to login.
The VCD Creative Lab is open
Monday-Friday: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Saturday: 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
VCD Undergraduate Studio
The VCD Undergrad Student Lounge is a 1,500 square foot space located in Taylor Hall Room 401. The lounge was made for VCD undergrad students to study and relax in between classes and includes a coffee and tea bar, microwave and comfy armchairs. This floor-to-ceiling-window-lined room is filled with natural light, some of the best views overlooking Kent State’s campus and is usually buzzing with student activity.
VCD Graduate Studio
The nature of design has changed considerably in the last decade. Design thinking, design research and human-centered design all require work environments as collaborative and adaptable as the teams within them. Our graduate studio located in Taylor Hall Room 441 provides each of the graduate students in the School of Visual Communication Design with an individual workspace. The 2,644 square foot studio also includes ideation and planning areas, a pin up studio, white boards, new iMacs and Dell Optiplex 7050 digital displays.
Check out MA/MFA students' thesis projects.
Type High Press
The School of Visual Communication Design houses a 2,300 square foot letterpress lab with a collection of over 400 fonts of metal and wood type, five flat-bed presses and two platen presses. This unique lab is one of the largest in the region available for student experimentation with this traditional form of hands-on relief printing. It offers students in upper-level and graduate classes an opportunity for creative integration of various media and processes—both traditional and contemporary—in the design and printing process.