Sue Colberg, MVA, CDP, FGDC

Area of Study / Keywords

Visual Communication Design Book Design Publication Design Typography Information Design Visual Identity Design Design Studies Book Arts Artist Books Graphic Design

About

MVA Visual Communication Design, University of Alberta, 1991

FGDC Society of Graphic Designers of Canada, 2009

CDP Certified Design Professional (Graphic Designers of Canada)

Professor of Design Studies in Visual Communication Design in the Department of Art & Design at the University of Alberta, Sue Colberg has worked with institutions and scholarly publishing houses in Canada, the United States and Great Britain. A Fellow of the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada, she has won numerous national and international design awards for her work. Colberg has served on the juries of the Stiftung Buchkunst Leipzig “Best Book Design from All Over the World” competition, the Association of American University Presses Book, Jacket & Journal Show, the Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada and the Society of Graphic Designers of Canada, among others.

Her contributions to the fields of design and visual communication have garnered her many awards including, in 2023 alone, the Registered Graphic Designers Design Educator Award of Excellence (national), and two Awards of Excellence from the University and College Designers Association (international).

Her book and publication designs, typography and hand-bound books have been exhibited across Canada and the United States, as well as in China, Cuba, Egypt, France, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Korea, Poland, Switzerland, Türkiye and New Zealand. Examples of her work are in the permanent collections of the Fitzwilliam Museum at the University of Cambridge, the Houghton Library at Harvard University, the German Book and Type Museum in Leipzig, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, the E.H. Norman Library of the Canadian Embassy in Tokyo, the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at the University of Toronto, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts and the Banff Centre. Colberg served for many years as the Canadian National Representative to the International Council of Graphic Design Associations (icograda) now known as ico-D, the International Council of Design.

Research

Recent Work in Permanent Collections

• Biblioteca Alexandrina (Watercircle), Cairo, Egypt (international). 2023

• University & College Designers Association (UCDA) Design Archive Collection. Exhibition Catalogue: Transitional Impressions), Smyrna,TN, USA (international). 2023

• University & College Designers Association (UCDA) Design Archive Collection, (Special Publication Arts & Culture: Transitional Impressions), Smyrna,TN, USA (international). 2023

• McMaster Museum of Art, (#Infodemic), Hamilton, ON, Canada (national). 2022

• McMaster University (Watercircle), Hamilton, ON, Canada (national). 2022

• Gould Library Rare Book Collection (#Infodemic), Carleton College, Northfield, MN, USA (international). 2021

• Gould Library Rare Book Collection (Watercircle), Carleton College, Northfield, MN, USA(international). 2021

• 2019 University & College Designers Association (UCDA) Design Collection, Austin, TX, USA (international)

Recent Exhibitions

• Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada, Fine Arts Building Gallery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB (curator & designer, group show / regional). 2023

• 20th Anniversary Artist Book Biennale (Watercircle), Biblioteca Alexandrina, Cairo, Egypt (group show / international). 2022

• Unpacking Energy Transition: Flux Kit Beta Tests (Flux Kit Edition of Planet for Sale), SQUARE Gallery, University of St. Gallen, Switzerland (solo show / international). 2022

• Pro-TO-types (Planet for Sale), Gallery of the Academy of Fine Arts, Krakow, Poland (group show / international). 2022

• Anthem: Expressions of Canadian Identity (Watercircle), Canadian Language Museum, Toronto, ON, Canada (group show / national). 2022

• ImmuNations: The Art & Science of Global Vaccination (#Infodemic), McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, ON, Canada (group show / national). 2022

• bi e ctr 12: biennale internationale d’estampe contemporain de Trois Rivières (#Infodemic), Trois Rivières, QC, Canada (group show / national). 2022

• Transitional Impressions (poster series & catalogue design), University of Alberta, FAB Gallery, Edmonton, AB, Canada (group show / regional). 2022

• Transitional Impressions (poster series & catalogue design), University of Calgary’s Little Gallery & Gallery 621, Calgary, AB, Canada (group show / national). Colberg CV 8. 2022

• Alcuin Society Awards for Excellence in Book Design in Canada, Fine Arts Building Gallery, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB (curator & designer, group show / regional). 2022

• Home and Land (Watercircle), Canadian Language Museum, Toronto, ON, Canada (group show / national). 2021

• Okanagan Print Triennial 2021 (#Infodemic), Vernon Public Art Gallery, Vernon, BC, Canada (group show / international). 2021

• #Infodemic, Vernon Public Art Gallery, Vernon, BC, Canada (solo show / national). 2021

• Engaging Creativities: Art in the Pandemic (#Infodemic), Congress 2021 of the Humanities & Social Sciences, Edmonton, AB , Canada (group show / national). 2021

Recent Published Work, In-Print Work and Articles

• “A look at Design Students’ City of Edmonton River Valley Interpretive Signage Project,” Arts Anthology, 20 March (online). Colberg CV 14

• ImmuneNations: The Art and Science of Global Vaccination, #Infodemic: Sean Caulfield and Susan Colberg (CANADA), McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, ON, pp. 38–47. 2022

• Transitional Impressions: Visualizing Environmental Change, University of Calgary & University of Alberta, AB, pp. 24–31. 2022

• Loveless, N. (ed.), “Immunations: The Art & Science of Global Vaccination, #Infodemic: Sean Caulfield and Susan Colberg (CANADA)”, Exhibition Catalogue, McMaster Museum of Art, McMaster University, ON,     pp. 36–45, 189. 2022

• #Infodemic: Sean Caulfield and Susan Colberg (CANADA), Biennale internationale d’estampe contemporain de Trois Rivières Catalogue, Trois Rivières, QC, pp. 172–175. 2021

• Young, Pamela, “Art’s Role in inspiring thoughtful conversations about the coronavirus pandemic,” Galleries West Magazine, 29.06. 2019

Teaching

Sue Colberg has taught design at all levels of higher education and is an award winning instructor. She has worked extensively to incorporate community-based and experiential learning projects into her senior courses enabling her students to benefit from working with external clients and partners.

DES 497 - Advanced Typography

Typographic design for language communication, expression, and interaction. Topics may include the history of letterforms, history of printing, publication design and type on screen. Prerequisite or corequisite DES 493 or consent of the Department.

DES 498 - Information Design

Interpretation and visualization of information. Procedural instructions, mapping, and diagramming. Perception and cognition. Design and testing for user experience. Visual presentation of abstract and quantitative information. Prerequisite or corequisite: DES 494 or consent of the Department.

DES 538 - Special Projects in Studio Disciplines: Advanced

Normally offered in spring/summer. Prerequisite: consent of Department.

DES 593 - Visual Communication Design Advanced I

Applied practical projects and complex design systems. Problem definition, strategic planning, project management, and design evaluation. Project briefs and production specifications, professional practice, procedures, codes of ethics, copyright and intellectual property. Prerequisites: DES 494 or consent of the Department. BDes students must enroll in DES 594 in the second term. Note: not open to students with credit in DES 590.

DES 594 - Visual Communication Design Advanced II

Applied practical projects and complex design systems. Problem definition, strategic planning, project management and design evaluation. Project brief and production specifications, professional practice, procedures, codes of ethics and intellectual property. Topics may include self-directed design research projects. Prerequisite: DES 593 or consent of the Department. Note: not open to students with credit in DES 590.

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