Josh Owen Headshot

Josh Owen

Vignelli Center Director

School of Design
College of Art and Design
Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design

585-475-2658
Office Location

Josh Owen

Vignelli Center Director

School of Design
College of Art and Design
Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design

Education

BA, BFA, Cornell University; MFA, Rhode Island School of Design

Bio

Josh Owen is the Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design and the Director of the Vignelli Center for Design Studies at RIT. Prior to his current role, Owen was Director of the Industrial Design Department in which he continues to teach his popular course known as the Metaproject. Owen is also the president of his eponymous design studio, Josh Owen LLC. His professional projects are produced by major manufacturers and have won many awards. Owen's work is included in the permanent design collections of the Centre Georges Pompidou (FR), the Chicago Athenaeum (USA), the Corning Museum of Glass (USA), the Denver Art Museum (USA), the Design Museum Brussels (BE), the Museum of American Jewish History (USA), the Musee des beaux-arts de Montreal (CA), the Philadelphia Museum of Art (USA) the Red Dot Design Museum (DE) and the Taiwan Design Museum (TP). His students' works have won awards, been exhibited and featured in international publications and critical venues and have been put into mass production prior to graduation. Owen's professional work has been featured in major exhibitions, numerous books on design and is regularly included in critical design discourse. He is the author of the book, Lenses for Design and the forthcoming book, Design for Study. 

585-475-2658

Personal Links
Areas of Expertise

Currently Teaching

IDDE-501
3 Credits
This course will explore the application of design methods and skills to projects addressing large-community and global problems requiring team-based, trans-disciplinary collaborations.
IDDE-599
1 - 6 Credits
Industrial Design Independent Study provides students the means to study in a specialized area with an individual faculty member. With the assistance of their faculty advisers, students will propose a course of study. Students must obtain permission of an instructor and complete the Independent Study Permission Form to enroll. A 3.0 or higher GPA required.
IDDE-799
1 - 6 Credits
Industrial Design Independent Study provides students the means to study in a specialized area with an individual faculty member. With the assistance of their faculty advisers, students will propose a course of study. Students must obtain permission of an instructor and complete the Independent Study Permission Form to enroll. **NOTE: Student must have a minimum 3.0 GPA **

In the News

  • February 12, 2024

    Roger Remington, Frederick Burbach, and Josh Owen sit at a table reviewing one of the many posters Burbach donated to the Vignelli Center for Design Studies

    Vignelli Center for Design Studies receives donation of Swiss poster collection

    Students who engage with the research collections in RIT’s Vignelli Center for Design Studies can now benefit from studying a comprehensive collection of Swiss posters thanks to a donation from Frederick Jon Burbach. The collection of approximately 350 posters includes the work of 125 of Europe’s finest graphic designers from the past eight decades.

  • November 15, 2023

    logo for the United States Department of Education, featuring a tree in the middle of the seal.

    Faculty receive new grant to expand foreign language education offerings with a focus on STEAM

    Faculty in RIT’s Modern Languages and Cultures department received an International Research and Studies grant from the U.S. Department of Education to fund the development of new materials and curricula for Chinese, Italian, and Spanish courses that focus on STEAM. Associate Professor Zhong Chen, Principal Lecturer Elisabetta D’Amanda, and Department Chair Sara Armengot will spend the next three years developing, testing, and implementing the new materials in the classroom.

  • August 30, 2023

    seven college students with surprised expressions standing in a line holding small black envelops.

    Metaproject 14 gives students a chance to leave their mark on the RIT campus landscape

    For this semester's Metaproject industrial design initiative, students will work with RIT President David Munson to design concepts for a series of outdoor, hands-on museum installations for the Henrietta campus. The outdoor installations will tell the story of RIT in a way that is immersive and engaging to passersby on campus. Each student is tasked with creating a concept for one of the 14 installations. 

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