Jeff Kasper

Jeff Kasper is an interdisciplinary artist, writer, and educator, specializing in public art, visual design, and social engagement.

He creates pedagogical tools, text-based projects, social spaces, publications, exhibitions, community education, and workshops, often in partnership with community-based and non-profit organizations. Much of his recent work merges the tools and techniques of graphic design with participatory learning, and contemplative practices, to examine the dynamics of social support, proximity, and safety. His practice has consistently engaged questions around how people build community and practice care and collaboration, especially through trauma, conflict, and crisis.

Over the last decade, he worked with various cultural, grassroots, and social planning organizations in New York City to realize over 300 public programs, publications, and exhibitions with hundreds of artists, partners, and the public at large. Civic Art Lab, the public pedagogy platform he co-founded in 2010, brings together hundreds each year for hands-on workshops and sustainability initiatives. As a peer-mentor and fellowship facilitator with organizations, New York Foundation for the Arts and More Art, he has supported the work of nearly 200 individual socially engaged artists. Kasper retains an active consultancy practice where he works on graphic design, strategic planning, and creating programs for outreach, disability advocacy, health and wellbeing, accessibility, and artist services.

Kasper has chaired and presented his research at numerous conferences and professional forums including College Art Assocation (CAA), Foundations in Art: Theory and Education (FATE), Association for the Study of the Arts of the Present, Interaction Design and Children Conference at Parsons School of Design, Sesame Workshop, and New York Hall of Science, The International Academic Forum (IAFOR), Rethinking Residencies Symposium at the Vera List Center, Teaching Social Practice at UMass Dartmouth, MoMA Department of Education's Prime Time Exchange, AIGA Phoenix Design Week, and the Art Directors Club.