Talia Cotton is a designer, coder, and educator, and is recognized as a leading specialist in the intersection of design and technology. In 2023 she founded Cotton, a creative agency pursuing purposeful design work with code. Talia also teaches intro and advanced coding at Parsons School of Design. Before Cotton, Talia led data-driven and algorithmic design on two teams at Pentagram, while running an independent design and code practice. Her clients include Google Arts & Culture, the New York Times, the Gates Foundation, and MIT. Talia was named a "Responsible Designer to Watch" by GDUSA and was awarded the Young Guns Award for creative professionals under 30. She has been recognized by The One Club, TDC, Fast Company, and It's Nice That, and has inspired audiences at the international Google Visual Design Summit, OFFF Tel Aviv, and Future London Academy, among others.
Mason Gross School of the Arts (at Rutgers University)
Years of Gratitude...
... to Alon Krausz, my high school math teacher who cultivated my love for math, and made it possible to pass it on to others... to Brendan Griffiths, a former coding teacher who taught me good design is more important than good coding... to E. Roon Kang, one of the most brilliant and humble designers I’ve ever met... to Justin Bakse, the best teacher at Parsons and an absolute gem, and has undoubtedly changed hundreds of students’ lives and still going... to Kevin Brainard, a former teacher who designs with wit, brilliance and chutzpa, and always an advocate... to Michael McCaughley, one of the most talented designers I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with... to Mohamed Elhawary. Lol. He’s my ex! It didn’t work out, but we spent many late nights designing side-by-side... to Nikki Makagnasar, a bright designer and coder and genuinely a lovely human... to Michael Bierut. Some people ask, “What Would Jesus Do?” I ask, “What Would Michael Bierut do?”... and to all my students, and my incredible team at Cotton.
