Brenda Cowan

Brenda Cowan is a professor of Graduate Exhibition and Experience Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).

She has spent more than 18 years developing FIT’s graduate program into one that is rigorous and innovative, educating designers to critically examine the emotional, psychological, and social influence of exhibitions. She is a Fulbright Specialist Scholar and co-host of the Matters of Experience podcast, where she further advances the discussion on experience design by engaging with prominent thinkers and practitioners.

Cowan is perhaps best known for her pioneering work on the theory of Psychotherapeutic Object Dynamics, which investigates how museum objects, when carefully presented with narrative, can facilitate healing and emotional connection. Her international research includes case studies with object donors, refugees, and museum visitors at institutions such as the September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York, the War Childhood Museum in Sarajevo, and the National Museums of World Culture in Sweden, where she evaluated Stories from Syria with Syrian refugees.

Her publication , Museum Objects, Health and Healing, and her keynote speeches at conferences such as CoMuseum (Athens), MidAtlantic Association of Museums, and the American Alliance of Museums have played a significant role in reshaping our understanding of the connection between museums and wellbeing. She has continuously promoted the idea of exhibitions as tools for care, focusing on empathy, storytelling, and inclusion.

Cowan's impact also reaches policy and practice. She has worked on masterplans with SUNY institutions, given international presentations from South Africa to China, and conducted workshops for cultural professionals throughout Europe and North America. Her approach embodies a comprehensive view of exhibition design, one that is grounded in intellect, guided by ethics, and emotionally resonant.