Academic
Leadership
| 2022— | Dean, Division of Architecture + Design | Rhode Island School of Design |
Position Summary & Highlights:
- Four-year appointment starting July 1, 2022
- Operational oversight of seven academic departments: Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Interior Architecture, Furniture Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design and Apparel Design; as well as RISD oversight of the Brown/RISD Masters of Design Engineering program
- Assure academic excellence through approval of courses, grants and program materials
- Evaluate faculty dossiers and make recommendations for reappointment, critical review, and promotion
- Co-managed Department of Architecture, including hiring part-time faculty, staff and transitioned department out of receivership
- Modeled co-leadership structure for Department of Industrial Design and Interior Architecture
- Oversaw divisional implementation of college-wide Social Equity and Inclusion requirement for each undergraduate program
- Worked with deans and Provost on undergraduate credit reduction and faculty teaching reduction with related academic and budget implications
- Participate in fundraising events with Institutional Engagement
- Evaluate capital and operating budget requests
- Initiated and supported cross-departmental electives
- Participated in the leadership development programs (Academic Impressions, AICU Mass/RI)
- Organized cross-departmental instutional exhibitions, lectures and workshops including at Salone del Mobile and ICFF New York
Committees
- Search Committees for Provost; Asst. Dean of Brown/RISD Programs and Program Manager; Chief Marketing Officer
- Financial Optimization Committee
- Budget Finance Committee
- Lifelong Learning Advisory Committee
- Strategic Planning Committee
- Co-Chair, Brown/RISD Programs cross-institutional committee
| 2014–17, 2018–19 | Department Head, Graphic Design | Rhode Island School of Design |
Highlights from 4 years:
- Researched, scripted and implemented new undergraduate core curriculum
- Led faculty rewrite of required three-semester typography sequence
- Supervised three staff members
- Oversaw hiring of five full-time faculty, four term faculty and two staff
- Initiated 1-credit workshop format for College
- Initiated and led renovations to graduate studio workspace
- Initiated and led creation of exhibition/event space for Department
- Commissioned and oversaw schematic designs for student and faculty spaces
- Staffed 110 courses/year; Added 15+ new electives into curriculum
- Oversaw NASAD accreditation process for BFA Program
- Scripted 2018 Academic Program Review action plan
- Twice oversaw design and development of department website, risd.gd
- Formed identity for department, garnered press and fostered substantial social media following
- Led effort to generate faculty departmental decision-making protocols
Faculty Appointments
| 2016– | Rhode Island School of Design, Associate Professor |
| 2012–16 | Rhode Island School of Design, Assistant Professor |
| 2006–12 | Rhode Island School of Design, Critic |
| 2011–12 | University of Connecticut, Adjunct Faculty |
Courses
Electives
| Design & Politics, The Web & Democracy, HTML Output, Call for Proposals, Graduate Open Research |
Workshops
| Web Programming, Digital Bits, Expressive Form with HTML/CSS, Serendipity in the Digital Library, Data-Driven Design |
Core courses
| Graduate Typography 1, Typography 1 & 3, Senior Degree Project, Graduate Studio 1, Graduate Thesis 2, Design Studio 1, 2 & 4, Form & Communication, Visual Systems, Making Meaning, Relational Design |
Committees
| Academic Policies; Brown/RISD Dual Degree Oversight Committee; RISD Research Committee; Search Committees for Dept. of Furniture, Registrar, RISD Design Director and Creative Director |
Education
| 2004 | MFA in Graphic Design, Yale University School of Art |
| 1995 | BA in Journalism (Visual Communication), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
Professional
The Design Office
| 2007–21 | Founder and Director of a work and project space for designers in downtown Providence |
- Co-working space that housed 70+ members and companies
- Shared working library
- Custom software tools for designers
- Publisher & distributor of projects
- Post-graduate fellowship program
- BIPOC fellowship program
- Public events and workshops
- Member-led professional development programming
- Archived at thedesignoffice.org
- Donated furniture and equpment upon closing. More
Custom Flow Solutions
| 2009–12 | Partner for company that created automated charts and graphs for media companies including Thomson Reuters and The New York Times |
John Caserta Design
| 2005–12 | Principal of a solo design practice that created information design systems and custom websites; Providence, R.I. |
Clients:
| Rockefeller Foundation, Antenna International, Creative Time, Max Protetch Gallery, Canary Project, American Battle Monuments Commission, Thomson Reuters, Watson Institute at Brown University, The New York Times, Macromedia/Adobe, Visa USA |
Early career
| 2000–01 | Quokka Sports, Creative Director |
| 1996–99 | Chicago Tribune, Design Director, Interactive News |
| 1995–96 | Atlanta Journal-Constitution, News Graphics Staff |
Bibliography
Books Edited
| 2018 | Talk Listen Door, edited with Sarah Verity and Nic Schumann, The Design Office |
| 2014 | for/with/in: Graphic Design for, with, and in the Browser, The Design Office |
| 2010 | Ira Rakatansky: As Modern As Tomorrow, edited with Lynnette Widder, William Stout Publishers |
Published Works
| 2025 | “49,” lettering, Pencil Magazine, Issue 2 |
| 2021 | “What Leading Designers, Educators, and Writers Want to See in 2021,” blurb, Eye on Design |
| 2020 | “Reimagining Elections,” video essay, Common Cause R.I. |
| 2019 | “Letter to Graduating Students,” essay, RISD Yearbook |
| 2018 | “What is The Design Office,” essay, Talk Listen Door, pp. 22–25 |
| 2017 | “Dear Class of 2017,” essay, Design Observer and RISD Yearbook |
| 2017 | “Question the Classroom,” essay, Design & Culture, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 75–78 |
| 2016 | “Kingdoms of God,” photographs with essay from L. Widder, Manifest, No. 2 |
| 2015 | “Which 2016 Candidate Has the Worst Logo?,” design review, Politico |
| 2015 | “Thesis Book Project,” essay with images, Design Observer |
| 2015 | “Browser as design tool,” essay, for/with/in |
| 2015 | Two browser-based images, original images, Printed Web #3 |
| 2014 | “Documentary Icons,” icons and essay, The Noun Project |
| 2014 | “The iPhone Is the New Model-T,” essay, AIGA.org |
| 2013 | “Insights per Minute: On Obfuscation,” audio editorial, Design Observer |
| 2012 | “Can One Size Fit All?,” essay, The Noun Project Blog |
| 2010 | “Instructions,” and “Khmer Rouge,” photographs, The Encyclopedia Project, Vol. 2 |
| 2009 | “It’s a Jungle Out There: What Do Meat Labels Mean?,” diagram, Meatpaper, Issue Six |
| 2007 | “Keys,” original photographs printed on letterpress with Dan Wood, Tuesday: An Art Project, Issue 1:2 |
| 2007 | “Pig Slaughter, Montenero Val Cocchiara,” photographs, Meatpaper, Issue Zero |
| 2004 | “Black and White, then, Color,” essay, Multi-purpose, Winterhouse Editions, pp. 17–32 |
| 1999 | “Consistency vs. Variety,” essay, Design, Vol. 71, Society for News Design |
| 1999 | “Online Newspapers,” essay, Design, Vol. 70, Society for News Design |
Interviews
| 2025 | Publishing Through Digital Networks, “John Caserta: Web to Print,” work featured and interview by Hyun Guo, AABB Korea, pp. 48–61 |
| 2025 | Demystifying Technology Podcast, “Teaching through the Lens of the Tool,” interview |
| 2021 | Noun Project Blog, “Creator Spotlight: John Caserta,” interview, June 2021 |
| 2017 | Scratching the Surface Podcast, No. 36, interview, by Jarrett Fuller |
| 2016 | “Physical and Digital Spaces of Daily Interaction,” interview by Jonathan Pierini |
| 2015 | Through Process, “Episode 25: Go Be Brave: With L. Hitchcock & J. Caserta,” interview by Mitch Goldstein |
Press / Quoted
| 2022 | Boston Globe, “Graphic Design Professors Unimpressed by R.I. License Plate Choices” |
| 2022 | Washington Post, “A Missouri County’s ‘Cluttered’ Seal Was Ridiculed Online. It Prompted a Global Search for a Replacement.” |
| 2022 | risd.edu, “Engaging in the Political” |
| 2021 | Eye on Design, “Many of the Design Community’s Gathering Places Shuttered During the Pandemic. What Did We Lose?,” July 2021 |
| 2021 | Mold, “Graphic Design and Local Food Ecologies,” March 2021 |
| 2021 | Eye on Design, “How Polished Branding Is Shaping a New Generation of Public Parks,” February 2021 |
| 2020 | risd.edu, “Choreographed Typography” |
| 2020 | Communication Arts, “Redesigning Creative Workspaces,” March 2020 |
| 2019 | Fast Company, “Are Traditional Design Degrees Still Relevant?” |
| 2019 | Eye on Design, “Design Education Is Moving Toward Specialization—Can Colleges Keep Up?” |
| 2019 | Providence Journal, “RI Senator Fumes Over Governor’s Ditching of Plan to Replace ‘Wave’ License Plates” |
| 2019 | Texas Monthly, “The Texanist Column” |
| 2018 | Eye on Design, “An Idealistic Answer to Faceless, Rent-a-Space Co-working” |
| 2018 | Christian Science Monitor, “The Story Behind the 2018 Winter Olympics Emblem” |
| 2017 | risd.edu, “Textiles Revolution Looms Large” |
| 2017 | Airbnb Design, “Modern Pictograms for Lottie,” Salih Abdul-Karim |
| 2017 | Noun Project Blog, “Icons in Motion,” Modern Pictograms |
| 2017 | Texas Standard, “New NBA Team Logo Spurs Critiques,” Michael Marks |
| 2016 | Billboard, “Graphic Design Experts Weigh In on Pandora’s New Logo,” Lyndsey Havens |
| 2016 | Eye on Design, “Design in 2016 Should’ve Been…,” Madeleine Morley |
| 2016 | Eye on Design, “How Does RISD Teach Graphic Design…,” Katie Chang |
| 2016 | Linux Insider, “Google’s New Fonts Chip Away at Written Language Barriers,” John P. Mello Jr. |
| 2016 | Associated Press, “Designers Weigh In on Rhode Island’s New Logo?,” Michelle Smith |
| 2016 | Providence Journal, “Local Designers Say Logo Gave Wrong Message,” Mark Patinkin |
| 2015 | ThinkProgress, “Why Did the ‘Peace for Paris’ Image Go Viral?” |
| 2015 | Boston Globe, “A Slow Climb Back for Providence,” The Design Office |
| 2015 | Quipsologies, “Modern Pictograms” website |
| 2014 | Box It Up, “Letterboxes,” Basheer Graphic Books, Singapore |
| 2014 | Deskmag, “Coworking in Providence, Rhode Island,” Amanda Gray |
| 2014 | Providence Phoenix, “DesignWeekRI,” Philip Eil |
| 2014 | Type Object, Barbara Brownie, included “Spatial Typography” and “Letterboxes” |
| 2014 | Providence Phoenix, “Let’s Work Together,” Philip Eil |
| 2013 | Bauwelt, Journal Issue 20.13, “Ira Rakatansky” review |
| 2013 | Providence Phoenix, “Locally Made,” Philip Eil |
| 2013 | Providence Phoenix, “What to Do with the Superman Building?,” Philip Eil |
| 2013 | Pictos, “Modern Pictograms,” Index Books, Barcelona |
| 2012 | Quipsologies, “Locally Made” |
| 2012 | Downtown Providence, “Independent Design at 204 Westminster” |
| 2012 | The Next Web, “This New Typeface Was Made Just for Interface Designers” |
| 2012 | Quipsologies, “Modern Pictograms” |
| 2012 | Apartment Therapy, “The Design Office’s Vintage Modern Workspace” |
| 2012 | Rising in the East: Contemporary New Towns in Asia, Newtown Publishers |
| 2011 | Quipsologies, “Flatfile” |
| 2011 | Architect’s Newspaper, “Life Drawing,” review of Rakatansky book |
| 2011 | Quipsologies, “Fall Leaves” |
| 2011 | GoLocalProv, “The Design Office: RI’s Creative Collaborative” |
| 2010 | Apartment Therapy, “Rakatansky’s Mid-Century Modern Masterpiece” |
| 2010 | Architecture Research Quarterly, “Books Received” |
| 2010 | For Print Only, “Ira Rakatansky Design Book Review” |
| 2010 | Apartment Therapy, “New Book, Ira Rakatansky” |
| 2010 | ReadyMade, “As Modern As Tomorrow” |
| 2010 | 3D Typography, Mark Batty Publisher, “Letterboxes” |
| 2010 | idN Magazine, Eco-Graphics Issue, “Letterboxes” |
| 2010 | Providence Journal, “Still Modern at 90” |
| 2010 | San Francisco Chronicle, “Providential Find” |
| 2009 | Apartment Therapy, “Letterboxes by The Design Office” |
| 2009 | Coudal Partners Blog, “Case Study: John Caserta” |
| 2008 | Providence Business News, “R.I. Artist Recognized for Map of WWII Invasion” |
| 2008 | Providence Business News, “Design Community Is Growing in Ocean State” |
| 2003 | Digit, “Smart Art” |
| 2002 | Macromedia Showcase: Flash Interface Design, Macromedia Press |
| 2002 | eDesign, “XML in Flash,” profile of work from Quokka Sports |
| 2001 | Communication Arts, “Quokka Sports Network, Nothing But Net” |
| 2001 | Color Harmony for the Web, Rockport Publishers |
| 2000 | The New York Times, “Motion Without Sickness: Web Animation Comes of Age” |
| 1997 | Redesigning Print for the Web, Hayden Books |
Public Lectures / Panels / Juries
| 2025 | ISIA Urbino, “Other People,” lecture |
| 2015–21 | Providence Public Library, D.B. Updike Prize, juror |
| 2020 | Common Cause R.I., “Reimagining Elections,” panel |
| 2020 | Youth Arts Movement, Zoom artist lecture |
| 2020 | Design × RI, “Design Week,” portfolio reviewer |
| 2019 | XXXI NYC, “Web to Print,” workshop and discussion |
| 2019 | Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, “Maximizing the platform: Publishing strategies for discoverability and agility,” panel |
| 2018 | RISD NY Alumni Club, “Design & Politics,” lecture and panel |
| 2017 | Yale Odds & Ends Book Fair, “Bindery.js: Web to Book,” lecture |
| 2017 | DesignWeekRI, “Creating Collaborative Community,” panel |
| 2017 | Design × RI Hall of Fame Award, juror |
| 2016 | NCMPR (Comm College Marketing/PR) Dist. 1, “Growing in all directions,” keynote lecture |
| 2016 | AIGA NY, “Designing the Future of Design Education,” panel |
| 2016 | R.I. Commerce Corporation, “Make it Yours,” lecture with Design Office members |
| 2015–17 | National Screening Committee in Design, Fulbright-Hays Program, U.S. Dept. of State |
| 2015 | AIGA Biannual Design Conference, “Browser to Book,” lecture and panel |
| 2015 | University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, artist lecture |
| 2015 | University of Delaware, Visiting Designers lecture |
| 2015 | RISD, “Artisan-Toolmaker,” panel |
| 2015 | California College of the Arts, “Browser as Tool,” lecture |
| 2014 | DesignWeekRI, “Organizational Systems,” lecture and panel |
| 2014 | RISD Museum, “Critical Encounters: Design & Education,” panel, moderator |
| 2013 | Brown University Library Digital Scholarship Lecture Series, “Data-Driven Design Systems for the Web” |
| 2013 | AIGA Rhode Island, “Making of Modern Pictograms,” lecture |
| 2013 | RISD, “Intersection of Design and Manufacturing,” panel |
| 2013 | RISD Museum, “Pedagogies Past/Present/Future,” panel |
| 2013 | Michigan State University, “Visiting Scholars Lecture Series” |
| 2012 | RISD Research Colloquium, “Teaching Digital,” lecture |
| 2012 | WordCamp Providence, “Wordpress for Teachers,” lecture |
| 2012 | RISD Museum, “Designers on Design,” lecture |
| 2012 | Harvard GSD, “GSD Talks: Ira Rakatansky,” panel |
| 2011 | A Better World by Design, moderator, “Graphics that Inspire,” panel |
| 2011 | RI State Council for the Arts, Design Innovation Grant, juror |
| 2011 | Pecha Kucha, Providence, “Office Furniture,” lecture |
| 2010 | RISD Alumni Lecture Series, lecture with Ira Rakatansky |
| 2010 | Providence Preservation Society, “20th Century Buildings of Providence,” panel |
| 2010 | Queens College, CUNY, “Vernacular Architecture of the Alto Molise,” lecture |
| 2010 | Pecha Kucha, Providence, “Favorite Photographs of Ira Rakatansky Buildings,” lecture |
| 2005 | Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University, “Works in Progress,” lecture |
| 2004 | The American Press Institute, “Assessing Online Story Design,” panelist |
| 2003 | AltPick Awards, The Alternative Pick’s Awards for New Media Design, juror |
| 2002–04 | SNDies, Society for News Design’s monthly and annual competition, juror |
| 2001, 2002 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, “Multimedia Bootcamp,” lecture |
| 1999 | University of California, Berkeley, “Online Journalism,” panel |
| 1998 | The Poynter Institute, “Visual Edge” photography conference, lecture |
| 1997, 1998 | Society for News Design’s annual conference, speaker and panelist |
| 1997 | AIGA Biannual Design Conference, “The Future of News,” lecture and panel |
| 1994–97 | NPPA Electronic Photojournalism Workshop |
Academic service / External academic engagements
| 2024 | Qatar University, authored NASAD Accredited BFA in Graphic Design curriculum |
| 2023 | VCUarts Qatar, class lecture and conversation |
| 2023 | Parsons Communication Design, senior project critic |
| 2021 | Hope High School, Providence, “Presentation of Expressive Typography,” lecture |
| 2021 | Drexel University, Graphic Design BS Program, program reviewer |
| 2020 | Fashion Institute of Technology, Graphic Design BFA Program, program reviewer |
| 2020 | Parsons Communication Design, senior project critic |
| 2017 | Tama Art University, exchange program visit and lecture |
| 2017 | North Carolina State University, “Graduate Seminar,” class lecture and critique |
| 2017 | California Institute of the Arts, “Design Entrepreneurship,” class lecture and critique |
| 2017 | Fairchild Books (Cezzar), book manuscript review |
| 2016 | Focal Press/Routledge, book manuscript review |
| 2016 | Lebanese American University, Department of Design, program reviewer |
| 2015 | Met School Providence, class visit |
| 2015 | RISD Museum, Faculty Biennial, lecture to docents |
| 2015 | University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, visiting critic, senior degree project |
| 2015 | University of California, Davis, class visit |
| 2015 | California College of the Arts, BFA Graphic Design Program, program reviewer |
| 2014 | Boston University, visiting critic, junior reviews |
| 2013 | Brown University Creative Scholars Group, adviser to Ian Gonsher |
| 2013 | Boston Architectural College, “Proposals and Presentations,” class talk |
| 2012 | University of Connecticut, visiting critic, senior degree project |
| 2012 | Boston University, visiting critic, senior degree project |
| 2010, 11 | Roger Williams University, professional practice lecture |
| 2009 | Clark University, presentation of my work |
Grants / Awards / Recognition
| 2018 | AIGA 50 Books / 50 Covers, Talk, Listen, Door, with The Design Office |
| 2014 | Print Regional Design Annual, winner, “Locally Made” |
| 2014 | R.I. State Council for the Arts, Design Innovation Grant, winner |
| 2014 | Communication Arts Typography Annual 4, winner, “Locally Made” |
| 2012, 2014 | RISD Professional Development Fund, grant recipient |
| 2013 | AIGA Best of New England, winner, “Design Office Poster & Bookmarks” |
| 2012 | Providence Revolving Fund Storefront Grant, “204 Westminster” signage, grant recipient |
| 2007, 2011 | RISD Part-time Faculty Association Technical Development Grant, grant recipient |
| 2008 | Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, RISD, grant recipient, Ira Rakatansky book research |
| 2008 | Society for News Design Malofiej Awards, Best of Show, “Sector Snapshot” |
| 2008 | AIGA 365: 29, winner, Information Design, “The Normandy Campaign” |
| 2004 | AIGA 50 Books / 50 Covers, winner, Multi-purpose |
| 2004 | J. William Fulbright Fellowship in the Arts, Italy |
| 2004 | Institute of International Education, Miguel Vinciquerra Fellowship for Research, fellowship recipient |
| 2003 | Knight-Batten Awards for Innovations in Journalism, winner, “When Evil Struck America” |
| 2001 | Communication Arts Interactive Design Annual 7, winner, Information Design, “Biomechanics of Weightlifting” |
| 2001 | Flash Film Festival, New York, winner, Technical Merit, “NCAA Brackets” |
| 1998 | How Magazine International Design Annual, merit award, multimedia |
| 1997 | Editor & Publisher, Best Overall News Site, “Chicago Tribune” |
| 1997 | Editor & Publisher, Best Design, “Lost Mariners” |
| 1997 | Newspaper Association of America, Best Online Newspaper, “Chicago Tribune” |
| 1997 | Society for News Design, winner, Page Design |
| 1995 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Stuart Sechriest Award, top graduate in Visual Journalism |
Group Exhibitions
| 2017 | AIGA Rhode Island, “SeeUs” |
| 2016 | RISD Exposé, “Uncommissioned: Recent Works from The Design Office” |
| 2015 | Providence Preservation Society, “Most Endangered Properties 20th Anniversary” |
| 2015 | RISD Architecture Gallery, “Six Lines” |
| 2009–18 | RISD Faculty Biennial, RISD Museum |
| 2011, 2012 | Providence Preservation Society, “Most Endangered Properties” |
| 2012 | Mota Italic Gallery, “New Vintage Digital Vernacular Letters” |
| 2007–11 | AS220, Providence, Photo Lottery Biennial |
| 2007 | Newspace Center for Photography, Portland, OR, “Among Us and Curious” |
| 2007 | Missy McLamb Gallery, Pittsboro, NC, “Progeny” |
| 2005 | Town Square Meeting Hall, Montenero, Italy, “Untitled Art Show” |
| 2004 | S.F. Center for the Book, “Reading the Future: Experimental Books from Yale” |
| 2004 | Graphic Design MFA Exhibition, “Multi-purpose,” Yale School of Art |
Affiliations
| 2020–24 | Board of Directors, DownCity Design (Providence) |
| 2016–19 | Member of Common Field |
| 2015–19 | AIGA Rhode Island Advisory Board |
| 2012– | Member of AIGA |
| Citizen of Italy & USA |