Joanna Katanska

I begin each lesson by briefly introducing myself and learning about you, your experience, and your goals. Depending on whether you are shy or talkative, I adapt my approach and follow your preferred style of conversation. I usually ask if you would like to show me some of your work; if you’re not ready or don’t have any pieces prepared, I share some of my own designs while making sure you feel free to stop me, ask questions, or discuss anything at any moment.

Next, I ask whether you have any particular challenges or goals that are important to you so we can incorporate them directly into our sessions. If not, I present a structured program that I usually follow, clearly explaining that you are welcome to give feedback about what you like or would like to adjust. After this, I prepare the first task along with a short presentation including examples, visual references, and brief theory to help you understand the concepts and go through the task step by step.

Each lesson starts with reviewing any previous work and giving personalised feedback. If a task is short, we move on to another exercise, always beginning with relevant theory and examples before giving the next task. For tasks that require more time, we spend about 60% of the lesson focused on that project and the remaining time exploring another area of graphic design. If you have limited time for homework, I structure the sessions so that most tasks can be completed together during the lesson. For portfolio work, you may choose to finish it during lessons or independently, while we focus on detailed feedback and covering essential theory.