Faculty

Caspar Lam is an Associate Professor of Communication Design at Parsons and co-founder of the design studio Synoptic Office. His practice and research advance public understanding of cultural, scholarly, and technical knowledge with work for organizations including Bloomberg, Carnegie Hall, Deep Science Ventures, and the Tremaine Foundation. His work has been exhibited internationally and recognized by the ADC, AIGA, Design Week, Fast Company, and the Webbys.

At Parsons he directed the BFA Communication Design program from 2020 to 2023 and now chairs curriculum across the School of Art, Media, and Technology. His teaching extends beyond the classroom: his assignments appear in Wicked Arts Assignments: Practising Creativity in Contemporary Arts Education and Taking a Line for a Walk: Assignments in Design Education. He launched the Early Career Mentorship Program at AIGA NY, named one of the ten best in the United States for new graduates by Time Out.

He studied biology before receiving his MFA from Yale, and led product design at Artstor (now part of JSTOR), developing collections management software used by institutions including Harvard and Cornell. He speaks on how design tools shape culture, and his writing appears in The Bloomsbury Handbook of Global Typography and Thinking with Type, 3rd ed. Named to Creative Review's Creative Leaders 50, he has served on the boards of AIGA NY and the Museum Computer Network.