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Paul J. Nini

Paul J. Nini

Paul J. Nini

Professor
he/him

nini.1@osu.edu

105B Hayes Hall
108 North Oval Mall
Columbus OH 43210

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Areas of Expertise

  • Visual Communication Design
  • Design Processes
  • Human-Centered Design Research
  • Sustainability and Design Ethics
  • Brand Identity Design
  • Environmental Graphic Design

Education

  • M.S. Design, Institute of Design, Illinois Institute of Technology, 1988
  • B.F.A. Graphic Design, Miami University, 1981

Select Recognition

  • Ed Grauer Award for service to the Columbus Society of Communicating Arts (CSCA), 2011.

Current CV [pdf] Google Scholar Research Gate


Paul J. Nini is a Professor of Visual Communication Design. He has also previously served as Department Chairperson, Graduate Studies Chair, Undergraduate Studies Chair, and Coordinator of the Visual Communication Design undergraduate program. He has been a faculty member at Ohio State since 1991. Before that time, he taught as a Visiting Lecturer in Visual Communication Design at both the Institute of Design (IIT) and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He has also taught as a Visiting Lecturer in the Graphic Design Program at the University of Cincinnati.

Paul's writings have appeared in numerous publications (via AIGA, Allworth Press, Bloomsbury, de.Mo, Design Issues, Eye (UK), ico-D, Information Design Journal, Princeton Architectural Press), and he has presented at a variety of national and international design and education conferences. A collection of his writings is available at Medium.com

He is a former board member of the Graphic Design Education Association, a past editor and designer of the IDSA annual education conference proceedings, and a former member of AIGA's Design Educators Community Steering Committee. Paul has served on the editorial board of the ico-D/Taylor & Francis journal Communication Design: Interdisciplinary and Graphic Design Research, and as a member of the advisory board for AIGA's Dialectic journal. He recently completed six years of service as a board member of The Center for Architecture and Design in Columbus, Ohio.

Active Community and University Service and Leadership

  • Communications and Visual Identity Committee
  • Peer Review and Teaching Committee
  • Promotion and Tenure Committee
  • Visual Communication Design Major Committee

Selected Publications

  • Nini, P. 2022. Just Say No to “Logo.” AIGA Design Educators Community.
  • Nini, P. 2022. Krazy Kat Meets Tarzan of the Apes: Tom Effler and his 1977 Comic Panels Translation Series. Print Magazine.
  • Nini, P. 2020. Threading Ethics in a Design Curriculum. Ethics in Design and Communication: Critical Perspectives, Bloomsbury, pp. 206-215. Laura Scherling, Andrew DeRosa, editors.
  • Nini, P. 2016. Case Study -- Ballot: a Digital Resource to Assist Young Adults with the Voting Process. Developing Citizen Designers, Bloomsbury, pp. 251-254. Elizabeth Resnick, editor.
  • Nini, P. 2006. Sharpening One’s Axe: Making a Case for a Comprehensive Approach to Research in the Graphic Design Process. Design Studies: Theory and Research in Graphic Design, Princeton Architectural Press, pp. 117-129. Audrey Bennett, editor.
  • Nini, P. 2006. Typography and the Aging Eye: Typeface Legibility for Older Viewers with Vision Problems. Wayfinding and Signing Guidelines for Airport Terminals and Landside, Transportation Research Board, pp. 139-142.
  • Nini, P. 2002. A Manifesto of Inclusivism. Looking Closer Four: Critical Writings on Graphic Design, Allworth Press/AIGA, pp. 196-199. Michael Bierut, William Drenttel, and Steven Heller, editors.
  • Nini, P. 1995. What Graphic Designers Say They Do. Information Design Journal, Volume 8, Issue 2, pp. 181-188.

Selected Exhibitions

  • Poster design, 2023. “Read Think Discuss Make” was included in the Gyeonggi Design Association exhibit Between Creativity and Individuality in Hubei, China, Huanggang Normal University, and the Gwangju Biennale Dullegil Exhibition, Korea. 
  • Poster design, 2023, “Berlin 1936” was included in the inaugural 2023 United States International Poster Biennial exhibit in Long Beach, California, with additional planned exhibits in various US and international venues.

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