Biography

M.F.A. Mason Gross School of Art, Rutgers University

M.P.S. Pratt Institute

Professor Emerita, Susan Bowman divides her time between Rowan University and her design studio in New York City. Most recently, Susan has been working with the non-profit organization Critical Practices Inc. (CPI) in New York City, serving on the Executive Board as Treasurer and Director of Design and Communication. Founded in 2010 and incorporated in 2012, CPI was established to support the emergence and development of new practices within the field of cultural production with the intent to create a dynamic network and platform for the diverse points of view necessary to shape and sustain critical, theoretical, and artistic practices. The artist/writer/curator Michelle Grabner selected Critical Practices Inc. to be included in the 2014 Whitney Biennial, a highly respected curated exhibition. CPI participated in the Whitney Biennial with three LaTableRonde discussions and three broadsheet LEF(t) Special Edition Publications, which Susan designed.

Prior to joining Rowan University, Susan was the Creative Director of Sesame Street Parents and Custom Publishing at Sesame Workshop (formerly Children's Television Workshop). She has worked as a graphic designer for The New York Magazine Group, Gruner + Jahr USA, and Hachette Filipacchi, and has worked with Artistic Director Stuart Horodner at Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, designing the book The Art Life: On Creativity and Career. Susan has designed catalogs for Mia Westerlund Roosen's exhibition at the Betty Cunningham Gallery in NYC; an exhibition catalog for Cabinet Magazine and MASS MoCA titled, An Exchange with Sol LeWitt; and most recently she designed Balázs Kisciny: Killing Time, an exhibition book for the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, Washington University in St. Louis.

In the past she has worked on redesigning Writing Magazine, a publication of Readers Digest, and art directing a series of booklets for The Center for Arts Education, New York City, a catalogue for the retrospect of artist Jack Whitten, as well as the book Beyond Form: Art and Architecture in the Space of New Media for Lusitania Press.

Professor Bowman earned a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, an MFA in sculpture from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of Art, and received her Masters in Design Management from Pratt Institute. Professor Bowman teaches Essentials of Design in the Department of Public Relations & Advertising, Graphic Design V: Publication Design and GDVI Visual Communication Information Design in the Department of Art. Susan was the Chair of the Department of Art from 2008 - 2016 and founded the Specialization in Graphic Design and the Biomedical Art and Visualization BFA. In February 2024, Susan earned the status of Professor Emerita and retired from Rowan University. However, she retains her status and rank, allowing her to continue teaching, researching, and mentoring students and alumni.