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Gary Will joined the °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ Art and Design faculty in 2000 as an Assistant Professor of Art/Graphic Design. His professional career began in publication design at Pergamon Press in Oxford, UK, followed by positions in advertising, marketing, and brand design at two agencies in Manchester, UK. This diverse professional background has brought an international perspective to °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ’s graphic design program, further enriched through his biannual trips to London, where he teaches Creative Strategy as part of °®¶¹´«Ã½ÊÓƵ’s highly successful Study Abroad program.

Gary earned promotion to Professor in 2016. His teaching and community engagement have been recognized with numerous honors, including the Caterpillar Inc. New Faculty Achievement Award for Teaching in 2002, the Mental Health Educator of the Year Award in 2004, and a nomination for an ArtsPartner of the Year Award in 2007 in recognition of his ongoing collaborative design projects with the community. In 2009, he was featured on WEEK News 25’s Postcards from Home. In 2015, he received the Faculty Achievement Award for Excellence in Teaching, and in 2016 was promoted to Full Professor. That same year, he became Chairperson of the Department of Art and Design, a position he held until stepping down in the summer of 2024.

The creative thought process and the role of visual storytelling—particularly within the area of brand experience—are central to Gary’s approach to both teaching and professional practice. Alongside his academic career, he continues to work as a professional graphic designer and consultant. He is also the co-author of Graphic Design Portfolio Strategy (Prentice Hall) and is currently developing a new book documenting a decade of his theater poster design.
Gary is also a practicing artist and photographer, time permitting, and his work has been featured in numerous group and solo exhibitions. His photographic work includes a series documenting a sabbatical journey to the remote Sateré-Mawé community in the Brazilian Amazon. Examples of his photography and artwork, along with a wide range of professional and student graphic design projects, can be found on his