About
Photo by Johan Viper
Jessie McGuire is a communication designer and educator whose work sits at the intersection of design and civic life, exploring how visual systems, narrative, and public-facing design shape trust and participation in culture and cities.
As Managing Partner of Thought Matter, Jessie has spent the last decade leading a studio practice committed to creative risk-taking and social purpose. She has directed projects ranging from projects and campaigns for cultural institutions like The Met, Rubin Museum, and New-York Historical Society to designing protest posters, and reimagining the U.S. Constitution as a modern, accessible document. Her work spans founder-led brands (Misfits Market, Blended, Wolfhound), global companies (P&G, Viacom, Albertsons), and grassroots movements (She Builds Power, Street Vendor Project), consistently asking how design can be a public tool, not just a commercial one.
Jessie's approach centers on creative courage: building cultures where experimentation thrives, holding space for ambiguity, and getting the best from talented people who love risk. A Salvadoran-American designer and mother, she is committed to using her position to expand who gets to lead in the design industry. She teaches entrepreneurship at Pratt Institute, lectures widely on design as civic infrastructure, and mentors emerging designers navigating an industry that hasn't always made space for them.
Before Thought Matter, Jessie worked in-house at Kimberly-Clark and led projects for multinational brands. She served as Advocacy Chair for AIGA New York and holds a BFA from Pratt Institute and an MPS in Branding from SVA.
When she's not designing or teaching, she's consuming words—newspapers, books, academic papers, podcasts—always listening for how language shapes the world.
