With an interest in the do-it-yourself movement, Lupton took advantage of limited resources to visually construct the history of graphic design, surprising peers in her ability to meld the visual and verbal. This combined her long-standing interests in writing and design in her first curatorial position. It was the thing you did if you were very 'neat,' which I wasn't.” Career Īfter graduating, Lupton was offered a position as curator of the newly-founded Cooper Union Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography. Design really wasn't in the mainstream back then. Lupton attended Cooper Union College in 1981 as a fine art student, where she discovered graphic design and the 'expressive potential of typography.' Lupton described this discovery of graphic design as 'a revelation. As a self-professed 'art girl' from a family of English teachers, her love of typography combined her love of art and writing. Her parents divorced in 1973 when she and her twin sister, Julia, were ten years old. Lupton was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1963 and grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. She has contributed to several publications, including Print, Eye, I.D., Metropolis, and The New York Times. She has written numerous books on graphic design for a variety of audiences. degree program at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), where she also serves as director of the Center for Design Thinking. She is the founding director of the Graphic Design M.F.A. Previously she was the Senior Curator of Contemporary Design at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City and was named Curator Emerita after 30 years of service. Steinmetz Design Chair at Maryland Institute College of Art. Known for her love of typography, Lupton is the Betty Cooke and William O. Writer, Curator, Educator, and Graphic DesignerĮllen Lupton (born 1963) is a graphic designer, curator, writer, critic, and educator.

Ellen lupton mica