Kelly Holohan

Kelly Holohan is a designer activist whose creative research focuses on issues surrounding the LGBTQ+ community, women’s rights, health and wellness, and environmental protection.

Holohan’s teaching practice parallels her research interests by fostering the idea that the work of a designer has an impact on the human experience. She is concerned with using design to do more than selling a product or service—to convey messages that serve a greater good. Pillars of her teaching philosophy focus on the importance of collaboration to help create richer design experiences by seeking diverse perspectives and cultivating empathy, both in and out of the classroom. Elizabeth Resnick’s book, Developing Citizen Designers, features a Philadelphia community partnership project developed as part of her graduate curriculum at Tyler School of Art & Architecture.

As an active participant in the design community, she has served in leadership roles at AIGA: the professional organization for design in the Philadelphia chapter, including Education Chair, Vice President, and President. Holohan’s design research has been featured in many publications and exhibitions, including Applied Arts Annual; Art Director’s Club of Philadelphia; Communication Arts Design Annual; Graphis Design; Graphis Posters; HOW International Design Annual; Print Regional Design Annual; AIGA Philadelphia Design Awards (PDA) and Segunda Llamada International Poster Competition. The Herskovits Library of African Studies at Northwestern University and the Poster House in New York City include her work in their collections.