Jeff Harter Headshot

Jeff Harter

Assistant Professor

School of Art
College of Art and Design
jhfaa@rit.edu
Office Location
[BOO]-4090

Jeff Harter

Assistant Professor

School of Art
College of Art and Design

Bio

Jeff Harter earned a BFA in Illustration from SUNY Buffalo as well as an MA in Illustration from Syracuse University.

As an animation assistant at the Disney Animation Studio in Burbank California, Jeff contributed to the feature films Hercules, Mulan and Tarzan. He later joined Disney Consumer Products, where he was the Supervising Character Artist for the Winnie the Pooh team.

Jeff left southern California to work at American Greetings in their licensing, alternative humor and entertainment departments. While at AG, he helped develop the visual brand language and illustration styles of several greeting card lines. Jeff also created concepts for the animated sci-fi comedy “Packages from Planet X," which aired on Disney XD in 2013, as well as the the animated comedy "Boy, Girl, Dog, Cat, Mouse, Cheese," originally for a development deal with Cartoon Network, currently on air at CBBC and Gulli networks.

Jeff is presently a Tenure Track Assistant Professor of Illustration at Rochester Institute of Technology. In addition, he contributes as a freelance illustrator for a variety of markets, including children’s books, editorial, entertainment, greeting cards, and licensing. Jeff completed his first four books in 2020 and 2021 for Egmont/Harper Collins UK, Random House Children’s Books and Harper Collins US. Jeff is represented by Anne Moore Armstrong of The Bright Agency US, and Dannie Festa of World Builders Entertainment.

jhfaa@rit.edu
Personal Links
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Currently Teaching

ILLS-213
Illustration I
3 Credits
Illustration I is the primary core course for illustration majors in their sophomore year. The students approach major elements of technique, application, and theory in relation to becoming professional illustrators. Studio sessions involve basic problem solving, anatomy, pictorial composition, media applications, figurative expression, use of reference tools, and illustrative techniques. Class structure allows demonstrations of processes and experimentation for assignment development. Group and individual critiques will be used to evaluate work.
ILLS-371
Pre-Visual World Building
3 Credits
Students will research visual standards that are employed to develop game and entertainment worlds. Each student is required to select a fictional world, which is then dissected, analyzed in its constituent parts, and reassembled, with emphasis on how elements interrelate to create a coherent whole. The wide range of possible subjects provides unlimited opportunities for exploration and development of individual styles and expressions. Students produce research materials, sketches, and models of the chosen environment.
ILLS-465
Book Illustration
3 Credits
This course will focus on preparing students to create work for the book publishing industry. Emphasis will be placed on creating a wide variety of finished illustrations that will appeal to picture book markets as well as a range of other publishing categories. To create a basis for their illustrations, students will visualize existing narratives and/or author their own story concepts. This will involve story development and storyboard conceptualization. Creative expression and technical experimentation will be encouraged. The course will culminate with the student creating a completed “dummy” suitable for presentation to book publishers.
ILLS-599
Illustration Independent Study
1 - 6 Credits
Illustration Independent Study will provide students with the ability to study in a specialized area with an individual faculty member. Students, with the assistance of a faculty adviser will propose a course of study. Illustration Independent Study students must obtain permission of an instructor and complete the Independent Study Permission Form to enroll.

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