Department of Design

Luminary Artist - Joe Miller

Congratulations to Graphic Design faculty member Joe Miller! Joe has been named San José’s 2025 Luminary Artist at the Cornerstone of the Arts Awards — honoring his decades of creative leadership, design innovation, and lasting impact on Bay Area arts organizations including Works/San José, Arts Council Silicon Valley, Abhinaya Dance Company, Association for Viet Arts, Contemporary Asian Theater Scene, Poetry Center San José, ICA, KSJS, and many more. On top of this honor, Joe Miller’s logo and brand elements for Space 47 Gallery are featured in the new edition of Design Basics, a leading international design textbook, demonstrating reductive thinking and brand communication.

Alexis Muller, a graduate from our first graduating Master of Design cohort, has joined Adobe as an Associate Experience Designer, bringing their creative talents to one of the most influential design organizations in the industry. Creative Futures: Integrating AI with Purpose in Design Education The "Creative Futures" project is dedicated to integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into design education with a focus on ethical, purposeful, and creative applications. Faculty from Graphic, Industrial, and Interaction Design at San José State University will collaborate to update foundational and intermediate courses, fostering hands-on, project-based learning. The initiative aims to develop shared learning outcomes, establish clear ethical guidelines, and create case studies that equip students to lead in the responsible use of generative AI within the design field.

Professor San Fratello's "Smoke Screen" is on display at Biennale Architettura 2025 19th International Architecture Exhibition. Using wildfire ash as a 3D printing filament, the Smoke Screen proposes rebuilding with remnants of destruction. It questions how climate change debris can become a constructive material and a mnemonic artifact for a safer future.

Leila Ensaniat Esteemed A' Design Award Winner.

Professor Ensaniat has been awarded the Golden A’ Design Award in the 3D Printed Forms and Products Design category for her innovative project Pulse. Her work was showcased at the A’ Winner Designs 2024–2025 Exhibition at the MOOD Museum of Design in Como, Italy (July 17–22), and is also featured in the official A’ Design Award yearbook. In addition, Pulse has been highlighted in both designnewsroom.com and designnewswire.com, further amplifying its international recognition. Pulse is a sleek, floating pen inspired by the elegance and simplicity of drifting clouds. Designed to reimagine an everyday object that has remained largely unchanged, the piece unites refined aesthetics with practical functionality. Through explorations of metal finishing techniques applied to generative, nature-inspired patterns, Ensaniat developed biomorphic forms that enrich both the visual and tactile qualities of the instrument.

Illustration West 63

Congratulations to adjunct faculty Chris Zollna, whose illustration of the Transamerica Pyramid was accepted into the Society of Illustrators West professional show.

Taanya Gumidelli, a graduate of our first Master of Design cohort, was hired as an AI Designer by Raspberry AI, a New York–based company developing generative AI tools for the fashion industry—blending experience design with cutting-edge technology.