"I come from the Czech Republic. Starting a Graphic Design course at a University was a huge shock for me. I was quite shy to speak because I was afraid that I was going to make mistakes and people were going to laugh at me, but I managed to overcome that because the atmosphere in the class was very friendly and the tutors were very supportive.
As a foreign student I found the language very tricky. On the one hand it was kind of paralysing at the beginning, the fear of using another language to express ideas. Trying to avoid these problems I have been using visual language much more, using visual imagery as symbols in order to communicate wherever I can instead of words. I use images instead of words, because they speak to anyone on the planet. Before I came to this course, I didn't have a clue what graphic design was, I just knew I liked art, I liked drawing, painting. I thought design must be just applying the art commercially, but that turned out not to be the case. It is much more. It is so creative, it is just as creative as art, using your logical skills as well as your creative skills."