Peter Kery, MFA, is a graphic and visual designer and educator working in the Washington, DC area. He is currently Assistant Professor at the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) and is an adjunct professor at George Mason University (GMU) in Fairfax, VA. His work encompasses visual problem solving in branding/visual identities, website design and development, posters, publication design, and environmental graphics.
Besides his current appointments at UDC and GMU, he has taught at the following institutions: University of Minnesota — Duluth, 2021–23; Montserrat College of Art, Beverly, MA; Suffolk University, Boston, MA, 2011–18; Massachusetts College of Art, Boston, MA, Continuing Education Department, 2006–7, 20013–14, 2017–18; Emerson College, Boston, MA, 2014–16; Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts (BU|CDIA), Waltham, MA, 2006–14; Harvard Digital Arts Academy, Boston, MA, workshop, 2009; Northeastern University, Boston, MA, 2005-09; Gibbs College of Boston, Boston, MA, 2007-08; The Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI, 2005-07; Leslie University, formerly the Art Institute of Boston, Boston, MA, 2004-07; New England Institute of Art, Boston, MA, 2007; Dartmouth at UMass, Dartmouth, MA, workshop, 2005-06; and The University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA, 1996–2005.
I am a graphic designer, educator, and researcher whose work exists at the intersection of visual communication, design history, design education, and curriculum development. While I continue to practice professionally my interests also lie in understanding how designers learn to think rather than simply how they learn to make.
Throughout my career, from practicing and teaching in Philadelphia to institutions across New England, the Midwest, and now the Washington, DC area, I have continually examined the principles that remain essential in our ever-evolving design profession. Recognizing that no single philosophy fits neatly within any one pedagogy, I have become increasingly interested in how those principles are interpreted within a department’s, a division’s, and ultimately an institution’s broader educational mission.
I believe graphic design education should cultivate curiosity, observation, critical thinking, and the ability to navigate ambiguity before emphasizing the production of artifacts. Software, technologies, media, and professional workflows will inevitably change, but the capacity to ask meaningful questions, develop ideas, and communicate with intention possesses far greater longevity. A successful design education should prepare students not simply for today’s profession, but for one that will continue to evolve throughout their careers.
My teaching emphasizes research, experimentation, process, and reflection. Students are encouraged to slow down, investigate visual problems deeply, and develop original solutions grounded in thoughtful inquiry rather than immediate production. I view critiques as conversations, experimentation as an essential component of learning, and failure as a productive part of design education.
My research extends beyond contemporary design practice into the history of visual communication and writing systems. I am fascinated by how humans have transformed thought into visible form, how cultures have organized information across time, and how those histories continue to shape the way designers communicate today. Whether exploring the origins of writing, typography, publication design, or the impact of artificial intelligence on the profession, I am ultimately asking the same question: How do we prepare designers not simply for the next job, but for a lifetime of thoughtful practice?
I believe the role of the design educator is not merely to teach software or current industry practices, but to help students develop the habits of observation, intellectual curiosity, and creative resilience that will allow them to adapt long after today’s technologies have become tomorrow’s history. The artifacts designers produce will always change; the intellectual habits that guide their creation are what endure.
Peter Kery, Summer 2026