Skip to main content
Vilcek Foundation
  • About
    • About

      The Vilcek Foundation raises awareness of immigrant contributions in the United States and fosters appreciation of the arts and sciences.

    • Our Mission
    • Our Founders
    • Our Team
    • Press Center
    • Contact
  • Prizes
    • Prizes

      The Vilcek Foundation Prizes celebrate extraordinary achievements in the arts and sciences.

    • About the Prizes
    • Prize Recipients
    • Vilcek Prizes

      Awards immigrants with a legacy of major accomplishments.

    • Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise

      Recognizes young immigrant professionals for outstanding achievements.

    • Vilcek Prize for Excellence

      Celebrating intellectual and cultural leaders in the United States.

    • Marica Vilcek Prize in Art History

      Honors art historians, curators, and fine arts professionals.

  • Art
  • Grants
    • Grants

      Grants awarded to 501(c)(3) cultural, educational, and philanthropic organizations in the United States.

    • Grants

      Learn more and apply for a grant.

    • Grants History

      Explore a list of past Vilcek Foundation grantees.

  • Events
  • News
Sign Up Search
Home > News > Wael Morcos: “Graphic design is everywhere around us”

Wael Morcos: “Graphic design is everywhere around us”

News | March 12, 2024
Tags
Arabic typography branding communication design experience design graphic design identity inclusive design Lebanon Notre Dame University Rhode Island School of Design RISD
Download audio
Audio: Listen to this post
Share this page
Share this page on X Share this page on Facebook Share this page on LinkedIn
Wael Morcos wearing a red button-down shirt and sitting in front of a gray concrete wall.

“Graphic design is everywhere around us, and has a power to permeate conversations and shape narratives,” says Wael Morcos. “It not only accentuates stories but also imbues them with nuanced depth. It’s a means to express our present zeitgeist with contemporary urgency.”

Morcos is a Lebanese American graphic designer whose work spans the creation of contemporary Arabic fonts, brand campaigns for companies including IBM and Nike, and the design of books like the Sharjah Architectural Triennial publications.

For his approach to typographic and graphic design that incorporates cultural and political histories to create socially relevant visual identities and campaigns, Morcos receives a 2024 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Design.

Wael Morcos stands in front a wall with filled with posters of his typographical designs.

Representing Language, Representing Ourselves

“Our language is as much auditory as it is visual… When you design a font, you’re designing a tool… it’s giving people tools to express themselves,” says Morcos. “I consider typography as the most potent tool in a designer’s arsenal… It has the ability to amplify the meaning of words and to advocate for representation.”

An old photo of Wael Morcos as a small child standing in front of ruins.
Wael Morcos as a child in Lebanon. Courtesy of Wael Morcos

Morcos’ passion for Arabic typography grew after he moved to the United States from Lebanon—first to pursue studies at the Rhode Island School of Design, and then to build a career as a graphic designer in New York. “I was drawn back to my native language, to my culture, to stories that I see myself in… Designing in Arabic from New York City is perhaps an act of resistance,” he says, “but also an act of reaching out, inviting others to engage, utilize, and be inspired by it.”

Wael Morcos holds a camera in the middle of a tree-lined street with parked cars on either side.

He describes typography as both of the time in which it is created and having a life that extends well beyond. “Arabic typography needed our help to be reimagined, redesigned for a modern context for modern lives,” he says. Bridging the gap between tradition and modernity, his fonts have been distributed through institutional channels like Google and other publishing platforms, “carrying on with the tradition of how we represent our language and therefore ourselves.”

Wael Morcos sitting in a garden sketching in a notebook.
Wael Morcos working with his colleague at a red desktop monitor.
Wael Morcos wearing a red button-down shirt and looking in a mirror.
Wael Morcos holds one of his printed designs in front of a large, bright window.
A close up of Wael Morcos with scattered reflections in front of his face.
A large black tapestry with white Arabic typography in front of a serene view with crystal blue water.
Courtesy of Wael Morcos
  • Wael Morcos sitting in a garden sketching in a notebook.
  • Wael Morcos working with his colleague at a red desktop monitor.
  • Wael Morcos wearing a red button-down shirt and looking in a mirror.
  • Wael Morcos holds one of his printed designs in front of a large, bright window.
  • A close up of Wael Morcos with scattered reflections in front of his face.
  • A large black tapestry with white Arabic typography in front of a serene view with crystal blue water.

Amplifying Arab American Stories

As an immigrant, Morcos finds himself drawn to create work that resonates for him personally, and bridges his nostalgia for Beirut and Lebanon with his life in the United States. He recently championed the development of Mizna’s I Want Sky, a literary journal that shines a spotlight on the experiences of LGBTQ+ Arabs. Through a fusion of multi-script typography, lettering, and illustrations, Morcos illuminates the narratives of a diverse queer community that yearns for understanding—drawing inspiration from the legacy of illuminated Arabic homoerotic poetry and speaking to the contemporary struggles and triumphs of this community.

Wael Morcos stands next to three of his colleagues.

Committed to amplifying Arab American voices, Morcos is a co-founder of 1on1 projects, a Brooklyn-based collective that works to elevate the stories and experiences of Arab and Muslim Americans through arts, performances, and programs. “You miss a lot of your old self and all the support system that you took for granted back at home,” he says. “I try to use my design practice to try to re-create some of these contexts that are important for me.”

Tags
Arabic typography branding communication design experience design graphic design identity inclusive design Lebanon Notre Dame University Rhode Island School of Design RISD
Share this page
Share this page on X Share this page on Facebook Share this page on LinkedIn

Related News

March 26, 2024

Maryam Turkey: Deconstructing Architecture

Learn about 2024 Vilcek Creative Promise Prizewinner, Maryam Turkey, a designer and multimedia artist who seeks to bridge cultural and societal divides while simultaneously challenging the status quo.
A portrait of Maryam Turkey in front of a large installation she designed.
February 13, 2024

Ramon Tejada: Decolonizing Design

Uncover the story of Vilcek Prizewinner Ramon Tejada, a graphic designer and professor with an approach that centers collaboration, inclusion, and radical innovation.
Ramon Tejada standing in front of a wall displaying his typography designs.
February 6, 2024

$250,000 in Vilcek Foundation Prizes Awarded to Immigrant Designers

Meet the recipients of the 2024 Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Design: Ramon Tejada, Juan Carlos Noguera, Wael Morcos and Maryam Turkey.
Splices of the headshots of the four 2024 Vilcek Foundation prizewinners in Design.

You may also be interested in

Wael Morcos

Wael Morcos receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Design for his approach to typographic and graphic design that incorporates complex cultural and political histories to create socially relevant visual identities and campaigns.
A portrait of Wael Morcos wearing a dark patterned jacket.

Ramon Tejada

Ramon Tejada receives the Vilcek Prize in Design for his leadership and commitment to accessibility and decolonization in design practices, and for his pedagogical approach that centers collaboration, inclusion, and radical innovation.
A portrait of Ramon Tejada smiling in a navy and orange sweater.

Maryam Turkey

Maryam Turkey receives the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Design for her practice that seeks to bridge cultural and societal divides while simultaneously challenging the status quo; through organic sculptural forms and surfaces, she deconstructs gender norms, revealing a powerful humanity.
A portrait of Maryam Turkey smiling and wearing a necklace made with mixed-materials.

Join our mailing list

Sign Up
Vilcek Foundation
21 East 70th Street
New York, New York 10021

Phone: 212.472.2500

Email: info@vilcek.org

  • About
    • Our Mission
    • Our Founders
    • Our Team
    • Press Center
    • Contact
  • Prizes
    • Prize Recipients
    • Vilcek Prizes
    • Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise
    • Vilcek Prize for Excellence
    • Marica Vilcek Prize in Art History
  • Art
  • Grants
    • Grants History
  • Events
  • News
  • Careers
Connect with us
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on Facebook
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on Instagram
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on X
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on LinkedIn
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on Youtube
  • Connect with the Vilcek Foundation on Vimeo
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility Statement
© 2025   Vilcek Foundation
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok