Alan Rapp

Alan Rapp is an editor, writer, and visual book developer whose work bridges the worlds of art, architecture, and design publishing. He holds an MFA in Design Criticism from the School of Visual Arts, where he developed a deep interest in how visual culture and built environments shape public discourse. Early in his career, Rapp served as Managing Editor of The New City Reader—a temporary publication produced from the gallery floor of the New Museum in New York in 2010—and later as U.S. Editor for DomusWeb International in 2011.

Rapp has taught graduate-level seminars in design writing at Pratt Institute and thesis development at the Rhode Island School of Design, fostering critical thinking and communication among emerging designers and visual artists. His writing on architecture, photography, and design has appeared in numerous outlets including The New City Reader, Dwell, Design Observer, Urban Omnibus, and in books such as The Phaidon Archive of Graphic Design and Black Maps: American Landscape and the Apocalyptic Sublime by David Maisel.

During his tenure as Senior Editor at Chronicle Books in San Francisco, Rapp acquired and developed dozens of titles across the art, architecture, design, and photography lists, collaborating with a wide range of creatives to bring distinctive visual projects to life. Beyond publishing, he frequently reviews photography portfolios, leads photobook workshops in New York and the Bay Area, and consults independently on book development and production.

Since 2018, Alan Rapp has served as the Editorial Director of The Monacelli Press, where he continues to shape influential and visually compelling books that expand the conversation around contemporary art, photography, and design.