Show off your talent
If you use CorelDRAW or are a newcomer to this excellent program you have a chance of winning prizes by entering your best work in the CorelDRAW International design contest 2011.

The contest details
All entries must be submitted as a CorelDRAW® X5 or Corel® PHOTO-PAINT^TM X5 file.

For those who do not have access to these software programs, you may download the free trial version of CorelDRAW® Graphics Suite X5.
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Corel states that there are 6 categories in this competition:

* Advertising/Marketing: Flyers, brochures, logos and other designs related to advertising, ….marketing or point of purchase (POP)
* Signs/Awards/Personalization: Designs to be used in sign ….making, engraving, awards, dye sublimation and other ….related industries
* Vehicle Wraps: Designs to be used for car, truck, boat or ….other vehicle wraps
* Textile/Fashion Design: Designs for fashion, embroidery and ….direct-to-garment printing
* General Illustration & Fine Art: Artistic, creative and unique ….designs
* CorelDRAW Marketing Campaign: Create a design to be ….featured in a CorelDRAW marketing campaign. Entries can ….be of any style, and will be judged on creativity and overall ….theme

There will also be student winners selected for each of the categories.

Prizes
Each of the winners will receive various software and hardware packages from favorites such as Roland®, Wilcom®, Euro-Systems®, Digital Designware, Apple®, Digital Art Solutions, Wacom®, Canon®, HP, Seagate® and Corel®.

The total value of all prizes awarded is over $75,000 US.

One Grand Prize winner will be awarded a Roland VersaCAMM SP-300i printer valued at $13,450 USD.

General submission guidelines

* The maximum file size for each entry is 50MB
* You may submit only one entry per category (total six)
* Individuals from certain countries or regions in the U.S. are not eligible to ….participate. (See full contest rules for details)
* Your entries must be created using CorelDraw X5, Corel Photo-Paint XB or ….the trial versions of these products.
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Contest links and details
This contest has no entry fee and ends on June 30, 2011.The following links provide additional contest information:

Official Corel contest website
Complete contest rules and guidelines
Online submission form
Complete prize list
Free trial CorelDRAW Suite X5
CorelDraw gallery

Graphic design school and design software
Enrolling in graphic design school is a large step in preparing for a career in graphic design. You will learn essential skills in using the best design software and hardware in the industry.

If you are a graphic designer who wants to increase your skill level and become more proficient in design software such as CorelDraw Suite, Photoshop Suite, and other cutting edge programs, speak to a graphic design college representative to see what courses are available.

The melancholy and choleric personalities
In parts one and two of Graphic Designer Personalities: What Type Are You, we presented the sanguine and phlegmatic personality temperaments.

While Samantha Sanguine is characterized as a bubbly and extremely sociable animal that loves attention and excels in telling stories and enjoying life, Phil Phlegmatic, by contrast, is subdued, even tempered, and non-excitable.

In part three we conclude this series with the choleric and melancholy and we’ll see how these personality types behave in their roles of a graphic designer.
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Curt Choleric: A study in motion and work ethics
If you have a choleric personality you are driven by being productive, meeting deadlines and possess a “take no prisoners” attitude towards project goals and work.

People who are choleric are typically described by others as natural leaders, highly organized, workaholics, driven, stubborn, bossy, and domineering.

If you are a graphic designer who has a choleric personality, you are known as someone who can always meet closing dates and will work around the clock in order to complete a project.

But at the same time, you are known for being argumentative and impatient with those who cannot keep up with you.

Choleric graphic designers can be great leads in projects because they are motivated to meet their goals at almost any expense. But this is sometimes to the detriment of other coworkers who get in their way.

Some of the personality attributes of cholerics are:

* Strong leadership abilities
* Self righteous
* Highly organized
* Self sufficient
* High work ethics
* Goal oriented
* Direct and blunt
* Bossy
* Impatient
* Strongly opinionated
* Insensitive to others feelings

Meet Matt Melancholy
If there is one trait that describes the melancholy personality best, it would be “thinker.” They have a high degree of intellect and will usually be the first to point out the flaws in a design proposal.

Melancholy graphic designers are seen as either realists or pessimists–very talented, serious, logical perfectionists. Mr. Spock of Star Trek could have been the poster child for melancholy personalities.

The melancholy tends to be withdrawn but can fully appreciate the aesthetic qualities in design. They have a deep sense of what it takes to create visually inspired graphics.

Because they are perfectionists, melancholy personality types can get mired in details that they cannot let go of.

Everything they create must be flawless and as a result, work-flow can sometimes suffer.

Melancholy individuals exhibit these personality traits:

* Analytical
* Self -sacrificing
* Gifted with talent
* High aesthetic values
* Idealistic
* Perfectionist
* Intellectual
* Low self-esteem
* Pessimistic
* Unrealistically high standards
* Withdrawn
* Inflexible
* Cynical

Now What?
After investigating the four personality types (sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric, and melancholy) it should be pointed out that no one is typically 100 percent of any type but actually a combination of all four.

Usually one or two traits are prominent with the others acting in a lesser role. Understanding which personality type you are, as well as those of others, may help you to work better as a graphic designer and with your colleagues.

Graphic design schools and the real world
Standard college courses usually deal with theory and facts. But at a graphic design school you’ll have hands-on creative sessions that can help you prepare for future career positions.

Graphic design colleges provide you with many opportunities to interact with your clients (teachers) and your coworkers (other students) which can be translated into the real world of graphic design.

You will experience the pressures of meeting deadlines and producing professional quality graphics.

To find out more about a career in graphic design, visit your local graphic design college or visit one online.

It’s more than just work
If all there was to work was work, this would make many of our lives easier. But in the real world we need to communicate and work with others.

And that means dealing with everyone’s various foibles and quirks. Understanding what makes you and others tick can help you to be a better graphic designer and team member.
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Meet Sam Sanguine
In part one of Graphic Designer Personalities: What Type Are You? we explored the first personality type of four: the phlegmatic. She’s dependable, low-key, amicable, and a bit shy; a person who cares but resists change.

In part two of this series we meet Sam or Samantha Sanguine. You’ll recognize these types of people immediately because they are always telling stories and talking. They are the optimist’s optimist and are always positive.

In the workplace, they are usually more concerned about how they are liked rather than what is at hand; work and deadlines. Sanguines are extroverts and love to be the center of attention.

Sanguines are extremely talented in getting along with everyone and revel in meeting new people. They love attention, are fun loving, and feel lonely when people are not around them. They are ultimate social animals.

Since sanguines are generally well liked by everyone, they have the ability to motivate and encourage people to do tasks or projects. But because they are so socially motivated they often get lost in project details or forget them altogether.

The sanguine graphic designer
Graphic designers who fall into this personality type will excel at customer relations. Their bubbly personality puts clients at ease.

They are natural born salespeople and can usually persuade clients to accept their design ideas.

But on the downside, since this personality type abhors details and deadlines they often find that they are behind in projects or fail to meet project specifications.
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Sanguine traits: The good and the bad
Typical traits for the sanguine personality are:
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* Extroverted, charismatic personality
* Expresses emotions easily
* Warm and friendly; loves people
* Loves to talk and tell stories
* Confident
* Persuasive
* Doesn’t Worry. Carefree
* Apologizes easily and quickly
* Always needs to be the center of attention
* Can be undisciplined and unproductive
* Tends to exaggerate
* Not detail oriented
* Overly concerned about being liked
* Restless; cannot sit still
* Can be easily angered
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Graphic design school and coworkers
A good graphic design school will not only provide you with the necessary education in graphic design and computer graphic techniques, it will also help you develop skills in working in a team setting.

In graphic design college you will meet many personality types. By understanding what personality categories they fall into, you’ll have a heads up on how to work and get along with others.

Next time…
For more information on how the theory of the Four Personality Types developed, see part one of Graphic Designer Personalities: What Type Are You?

When we meet again we’ll take a look at the personality type of the choleric graphic designer. These individuals live and die by keeping schedules. You’ll recognize them by their fierce yelling. Calm is not in their vocabularies!

So until then, keep on designing!

They’ve Got You Covered
The Tx Style Design Challenge, sponsored by Mannington Commercial, wants design entries from interior designers and architects for its new carpet products.

Six finalists will be selected by a panel of judges. Entries will be evaluated upon creativity, aesthetics, manufacturability and public reaction to the design.

What to Submit
All entries must be in digital format. According to the contest rules, the sponsors would like to see:

* A sketch or graphic design illustrating a carpet that you would like Mannington Commercial to consider for a new product line. A maximum of five (5) concepts can be submitted.

* An “Inspiration Board” or other type of graphic illustration(s) that serves as your creative stimulus for the proposed carpet design. Examples include images or samples from fashion, art, culture, nature, etc.

* Optional: Images or renderings of any product you designed prior to the start of this competition. ….The product can be purely conceptual, in development or fully realized/produced. It does not ….necessarily have to be a flooring product.

Prizes
Finalists (6) — Each of the six finalists will receive $3,000, be featured in a national advertising campaign, plus a trip to NeoCon 2011.

Grand Prize Winners (2) - Each Grand Prize winner will receive a full floor covering collection of their design, $6,000, and a trip to the Maison & Objet show in Paris, France.

Other Information and Contest Links
In order to be eligible for this contest you must be a practicing interior designer or architect. Students are not eligible.

Maximum file size for uploaded images is 1024KB. Artwork should be in jpg format.

All entries must be uploaded. No mailed submissions will be accepted for this contest. You must register to participate in this competition. The deadline for this contest is February 16, 2011.

There are no entry fees for this contest.

The following links provide more contest details:

Official Contest Website
Contest Overview Information
Terms and Conditions
Registration Form

Design a Resource Responsible Apartment
In today’s modern society individuals use an immense amount of energy and resources to just live out their daily lives.

Some say that the wave of the future is to live more responsibly by curbing our overall impact on the environment.

The Jovoto Life Edited Product Design Contest wants designers to take up the challenge of creating the apartment of the future, which will substantially be more energy/resource efficient and present a smaller physical footprint.
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The sponsor states:
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With some design and technology magic, even small space can allow for almost anything - so we’re asking you to redesign a small space thinking about these core ideas:

* Transforming space - use one space for work, play, sleep, guests
* Digitize everything - photos, books, music
* From ownership to access - think car-sharing instead of owning, pay-per-view instead of ….downloading, smart space-sharing and subletting
* Only the essentials - cut down on extraneous stuff, leaving only what’s really necessary

Contest Details
The apartment design must allow the apartment dweller to work, cook, and entertain.
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According to the contest guidelines, other considerations for your design should include:

* Comfortable lounging option for 8 people
* Space for 2 guests with some visual and ideally auditory ….privacy
* Home office
* Work area with space for a rolling tool chest
* Hideable kitchen

Judging Criteria
Entries will be critiqued according to the following standards by a jury panel and community feedback:

* Does the design meet the contest requirements?
* Is the design feasible and can it be produced in with a ….reasonable budget?
* Will the design be attractive enough for people to consider ….from an economic perspective?
* Will the design look good in 25 years? Will it influence people to “leave large and love little?”

Prizes and Awards
Winners in all the various categories win cash awards, products and prizes. The total value amount that will be distributed is $70,000.

Contest Links and Other Information
Follow these links for important contest resources and details.

Downloadable Contest Resources:
AutoCAD Plans
Google SketchUp Apartment Model
Apartment Plans as PNG

Contest Information:
Complete Rules and Submission Guidelines
Contest Registration Site

The deadline for submissions is January 17, 2011. There is no entry fee required to participate in this competition.

Design for the Future
The Roca International Design Contest: Jump the Gap, is seeking design entries which depict futuristic concepts and inventive designs related to bathroom products, new use of interior spaces and/or functions.

Your concept may not be possible to produce now, but the ideas may be presented in a manner that assumes technology and product manufacturing will catch up to your future design.

The design principles learned in graphic design school can definitely help in coming up with new and fresh ideas related to interior design, space utilization, and product development.

The sponsor of the contest states:

“Jump the gap is a creative contest proposal that brings new and innovative concepts to the bathroom, understanding innovation as the anticipation of users’ new desires and needs, as well as (why not?) the transformation of dreams and desires into reality.

“…a tomorrow when the limitations of today will not apply and when new needs, architecture, technologies and products will emerge which will help us to improve people’s lives by bringing them more well-being, hygiene and comfort.”

Basic Contest Guidelines
The contest is open to any resident of any country who is 34 years of age or younger. Applicants may be designers, architects or students enrolled in these fields.

Submitted entries may be from individuals or a group of two people. Entries are limited to one entry per person or group (two people).

Artwork must not contain any details or information that can identify the authors of the project such as signatures, names, logos, etc. All texts that accompany the designs must be in the English language.

* You may submit up to 4 files in jpg format.
* Maximum file size is 1500kb. Minimum file size is 500kb.
* High resolution images may be requested if your entry wins.
* A description of your project must be included with your ….artwork. (3,000 characters max.)
* Optional videos/animations demonstrating your project are …. should be in FLV format. File size should be ….no bigger than 10MB.
* Finalists will be required to verify their professional or ….student status by sending in a copy of their degree, diploma or proof of the school’s certification.

Prizes
One grand prize winner will be awarded €5,000 (6,655 USD). The winner or winners will be offered the opportunity to collaborate with the Roca Design Department in manufacturing a possible full-sized model for presentation at the 100% Design 2011 London event.

An exclusive rights purchase offer will be made available to the winner of the contest.

Contest Links and Additional Information
Specific contest information can be found by following these links:

Official Contest Rules and Regulations
Contest Registration Page

The deadline for submissions is April 29, 2011. This contest requires no entry fee.