Debbie Millman

Debbie Millman (born 1961) is an American writer, educator, artist, curator, and designer who is best known as the host of the Design Matters. She is the chair and co-founder (with Steven Heller) of the Masters in Branding at the School of Visual Arts, and President Emeritus of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA). In 2024, Millman was appointed an Executive Fellow at the Harvard Business School.

Millman has authored eight books. She is a co-owner and editorial director of Print magazine, and co-owner and co-publisher of The Rumpus. Her writing and illustrations have appeared in many major publications, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Philadelphia Inquirer, New York Magazine, The Baffler, and Fast Company and more. Her artwork has been included in many museums and institutes including the Design Museum of Chicago and the Boston Biennale. Her father owned a pharmacy business and her mother was a seamstress. She attended the University at Albany, SUNY, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a minor in Russian literature in 1983. During her university years, Millman wrote for the student newspaper and later became the arts and features editor in her senior year. Millman remained the creative director of the organization until 2005.

In 1995, Millman joined Sterling Brands in New York City, where she eventually became a partner, the president of the Design Division, and chief marketing officer. She worked on the redesign of Burger King, merchandising for Star Wars, and the positioning and branding of the NO MORE movement. In 2008, Millman and her partners sold Sterling Brands to Omnicom and she continued to work there until 2016.

2004–present: Design Matters, School of Visual Arts, curation In 2004, Millman founded a design podcast named Design Matters. The show started out at VoiceAmerica Business Radio, an internet radio network, where Millman paid them for airtime. Bill Drenttel of Design Observer asked her in 2009 to bring the show over and introduced her to Curtis Fox, who has remained the producer every since. Design Matters guests have included Massimo Vignelli, Steven Heller, Marian Bantjes, Tina Roth Eisenberg, and Stefan Sagmeister, Milton Glaser, Malcolm Gladwell, Daniel H. Pink, Barbara Kruger, and Seth Godin, among others.

In 2009, Millman and Steven Heller founded a graduate program in branding at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. She serves as chair of the program.

She designed campaign buttons for Hillary Clinton during her 2016 presidential campaign, wrapping paper and beach towels for One Kings Lane, greeting cards for Mohawk Paper and MOO Paper, as well as playing cards for DeckStarter and various others.

In September 2017, Millman curated a show for the Museum of Design in Atlanta titled Text Me: How We Live In Language, featuring artists and designers including Ed Ruscha, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Shepard Fairey, Neil Gaiman, Deborah Kass, and Lesley Dill. Arts Atlanta called the show a bold first curation. Millman co-curated conferences, such as HOW DESIGN LIVE, the 2017 AIGA National Conference. Since 2013, she has curated 30 Covers, 30 Days for National November Writing Month.

In 2022, Millman appeared on Storybound reading from her new book, Design Matters.

During her career, Millman has written articles for publications such as The New York Times, New York Magazine, Print Magazine, Design Observer and Fast Company.

Reception and awards Millman's artwork has been exhibited at the Boston Biennale, Chicago Design Museum, Anderson University, School of Visual Arts, Long Island University, The Wolfsonion Museum and the Czong Institute for Contemporary Art. In the past, she was an artist-in-residence at Cranbrook University, Old Dominion University and Notre Dame University, and has also conducted visual storytelling workshops at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, the University of Utah, Anderson University, Albuquerque Academy, the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan and the Type Directors Club in New York City.

In 2014, she received the Type Directors Club Certificate of Typographic Excellence for her entry in TDC61, 'Austin Initiative for Graphic Awesomeness' poster. Her book Self-Portrait As Your Traitor was awarded a Gold Mobius, a Print Typography Award, and a medal from the Art Directors Club.

Her podcast, Design Matters has received a number of awards, including the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award and the People's Design Award. In 2015, iTunes named it one of the best podcasts of the year. It was recognized as a Webby Honoree in 2018.

In 2021, she was named to Fast Company's Queer 50 list.

Millman's 2019 TED talk, "How symbols and brands shape our humanity", received over 2.4 million views in its first six years.

Advocacy Millman was involved with the creation of the NO MORE movement and worked on the team to design a new visual symbol to express universal support for ending domestic violence and sexual assault.

Millman is also on the board of the Joyful Heart Foundation and created the identity for the non-profit with her students at the School of Visual Arts.

Personal life Millman is married to author Roxane Gay. On July 9, 2020 Gay tweeted that they had already eloped but planned to have a proper ceremony officiated by Gloria Steinem in 2021. She is a lesbian.

Published works