Urjuan Toosy
Adjunct Associate Professor, Visual Communication in Practice
Contact:
Email: [email protected]
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/urjuan-toosy-614a3932/?originalSubdomain=uk
School: Department of Communications & The Arts
About
Urjuan is a multidisciplinary graphic designer and educator with an MA in Visual Communication: Experimental Communication from the Royal College of Art, London, certification in Decoding Culture from the School of Critical Design, certification in Inclusive Practices for Teaching from UAL Short Courses, and over a decade of pedagogical experience across higher education institutions including Kingston School of Art (Kingston University), Richmond American University London, Camberwell College of Arts (UAL), University for the Creative Arts, and Ravensbourne University London.
They deliver programmes across Graphic Design, Fashion Communication, Digital Design, and Journalism, with a pedagogical approach that foregrounds conceptual rigour, critical theory, collaborative methodologies, and industry-relevant perspectives informed by an active professional practice. Their teaching is underpinned by a strong understanding of the liberal arts model, positioning design as a humanistic and socially engaged practice.
More recently, Urjuan has participated in the peer-to-peer research programme School of Commons, facilitating workshops at Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK). Their research interests centre on decentralised and open-source knowledge systems, explored through practice-based projects such as The Short Big, a podcast and workshop series that interrogates and demystifies academic language while prioritising experiential approaches to learning and knowledge production in support of social mobility and educational equity.
With over fifteen years of professional design experience, Urjuan works extensively within the social, cultural, and research sectors, employing process-led and collaborative methodologies to deliver critically considered, high-quality design outcomes. Current and past clients include NIKE, The North Face, FARFETCH, Dickies, Lululemon, LEGO, Adidas and SONY.
Undergraduate programmes teach on
- Advertising and Public Relations BA (Hons)
- Arts and Visual Cultures BA (Hons)
- Film BA (Hons)
Qualifications
- MA Visual Communication: Experimental Communication, Royal College of Arts
- BA Graphic Design, University for the Creative Arts
Teaching & learning
Taught Programmes
- BA Graphic Design
- BA Fashion Styling & Communication
- BA Journalism
- BA Music Communications
- MA Graphic Design
Taught Modules
- Communities of Enquiry
- Web Design
- Visual Communication in Practice
- Creating Digital Images
- Design Directions
- Communication and Context
- Design Futures
- Critical Design Practice
- Innovation in Publishing
Research outputs
- Inclusive Design Practice
- Decentralised Knowledge Systems
- Open-Source Education
- Experimental Pedagogy
- Community-Based Learning
- Critical Design Theory
- Neurodiverse Creative Communities
- Decolonising Education
