The 70 students in 11th grade Digital Media class had a visit from their client for a first round creative review known as the "desk critique."

Meatpacking representatives Julia Bailey, Kevin Capuno and Melody Jiang made the rounds throughout the three classes, starting in Mx. Hazza Block's 5th period class, followed by stops to Mr. Luis Bonnett's 6th period class and Ms. Sara Minsky's 7th period class. 

This is the first session since the October 2nd launch of the program. Over the course of the past 12 days, students began their design exploratory by first doing rough pencil sketches and then proceeding to digitally rendering them in Photoshop. All designs have to be done within the parameters of the banner template and follow the creative requirements outlined in the brief. 

Each student was given two minutes to present their work. The design featured in this article is one example, in which the iconic cobblestones and red umbrellas of the district are the main visual elements.

"This is a real life moment in a project, going back and forth and getting feedback. It's true to life," Mx. Block said. 

This is also the first time the students are working on a large scale project using Photoshop. 

Avery Powell, Coordinator of the Art and Design program, and founder of the Banner Design partnership with the Meatpacking District Association, explained the importance of this. "Developing strong technical skills in Photoshop is tied to the Art and Design department's culminating exam for CTE (Career and Technical Education) certification. Students in the Art and Design major must pass an exam in Photoshop in their senior year. It's one of the requirements to get a CTE endorsed diploma."

Students will spend the next two weeks refining and finishing their designs based on the direction they received in the desk critique. 

Final presentations are scheduled for October 28th.