Personal reflections about Gender Equality in Graphic Design.
Personal reflections about Gender Equality in Graphic Design.
Clothes and gender
Undoubtedly, I notice that there exists silent and unconscious discrimination towards women not only in the professional field but also in education. Men always seem to be ahead in any area of work.
I have experienced many occasions where I felt the need to rethink my clothing choices, in an effort to be taken seriously or not to be immediately judged by appearance rather than because of my skills and ability to work. Like many women, I consider that dressing as basic and neutral as possible is almost a survival technique, both in the academic and working environment.
In terms of decision making, I sense that sometimes the power given to me is lower, not only because of gender gaps but also due to my age. It’s not enough that I’m a woman; there is also the issue of being young. Among these two big difficulties, it is hard for a young female designer to start getting clients and begin a career. Women are always put on a lower level.
Feeling unnoted
Why do clients and work colleagues treat women differently?
I feel that some people, even if they are well educated, think and live in a mould in which women do not belong to the branch of graphic design. When working with male partners in school and college, I sometimes felt put aside, even though we were on an equal footing. It is a feeling of almost invisibility, when I am not seen as someone able to make decisions, because I am a woman working alongside a man. I have perceived this duality of treatment, not only personally but by observing outside situations.
Women often tend to be identified as the second person in charge for supposedly having a lower knowledge. Besides my college experience, I am aware of situations where women are pressured to work out of hours or accept remuneration far below their skills and training. This may help to increase the assumption that women are more submissive and less assertive, which may occasionally provoke some loss of professionalism in the client/designer relationship.
Clothes and gender
Undoubtedly, I notice that there exists silent and unconscious discrimination towards women not only in the professional field but also in education. Men always seem to be ahead in any area of work.
I have experienced many occasions where I felt the need to rethink my clothing choices, in an effort to be taken seriously or not to be immediately judged by appearance rather than because of my skills and ability to work. Like many women, I consider that dressing as basic and neutral as possible is almost a survival technique, both in the academic and working environment.
In terms of decision making, I sense that sometimes the power given to me is lower, not only because of gender gaps but also due to my age. It’s not enough that I’m a woman; there is also the issue of being young. Among these two big difficulties, it is hard for a young female designer to start getting clients and begin a career. Women are always put on a lower level.
Feeling invisible
Why do clients and work colleagues treat women differently?
I feel that some people, even if they are well educated, think and live in a mould in which women do not belong to the branch of graphic design. When working with male partners in school and college, I sometimes felt put aside, even though we were on an equal footing. It is a feeling of almost invisibility, when I am not seen as someone able to make decisions, because I am a woman working alongside a man. I have perceived this duality of treatment, not only personally but by observing outside situations.
Women often tend to be identified as the second person in charge for supposedly having a lower knowledge. Besides my college experience, I am aware of situations where women are pressured to work out of hours or accept remuneration far below their skills and training. This may help to increase the assumption that women are more submissive and less assertive, which may occasionally provoke some loss of professionalism in the client/designer relationship.
The problem starts in Education
Design education is not inclusive to women designers in terms of bibliography and references. The truth is that the names most people retain from school are those of the classic “great white men” we learn in Art History. Fortunately, I think this situation is getting better. As we get closer to the middle of the 20th century and onwards, the female references slowly increase. Design History is taught in a very superficial way. In my opinion, it should be more in-depth.
During the four years of my course, I never had a female Design teacher, and the majority of examples presented to me were male designers. On one occasion, a male professor implied that the (in)success of female designers was due to the fact that they marry and have children.
It is obvious that there is a massive gap in Design Education regarding the role of female creatives and designers. Their representation in comparison to male dominance is very low, which makes clear that (at least, the Portuguese) system of education is lacking examples and mentorship from females.
My future as a female
I wonder if women prefer to work as freelancers or with a contract with an entity. In terms of scale, I think I know more men as Studio directors and women working for them as designers.
When reflecting about my future career, I conclude that women have a more decisive and leadership philosophy approach to their work, probably due to having to consider more elements. If we are self-employed, we can actually manage our time better and take more advantage of it, and be fairer to ourselves. However, when self-employed, we won’t earn money if we aren’t able to work for some reason. Everything depends 100% on ourselves.
On the other hand, in a company, we are provided with a structure that will support us. However, companies may be unfair most of the time, especially in pregnancy situations, where some fire women who shouldn’t be in a position to be fired. It seems unfair to me that, unlike men, women need to consider all these aspects.
The problem starts in Education
Design education is not inclusive to women designers in terms of bibliography and references. The truth is that the names most people retain from school are those of the classic “great white men” we learn in Art History. Fortunately, I think this situation is getting better. As we get closer to the middle of the 20th century and onwards, the female references slowly increase. Design History is taught in a very superficial way. In my opinion, it should be more in-depth.
During the four years of my course, I never had a female Design teacher, and the majority of examples presented to me were male designers. On one occasion, a male professor implied that the (in)success of female designers was due to the fact that they marry and have children.
It is obvious that there is a massive gap in Design Education regarding the role of female creatives and designers. Their representation in comparison to male dominance is very low, which makes clear that (at least, the Portuguese) system of education is lacking examples and mentorship from females.
My future as a female
I wonder if women prefer to work as freelancers or with a contract with an entity. In terms of scale, I think I know more men as Studio directors and women working for them as designers.
When reflecting about my future career, I conclude that women have a more decisive and leadership philosophy approach to their work, probably due to having to consider more elements. If we are self-employed, we can actually manage our time better and take more advantage of it, and be fairer to ourselves. However, when self-employed, we won’t earn money if we aren’t able to work for some reason. Everything depends 100% on ourselves.
On the other hand, in a company, we are provided with a structure that will support us. However, companies may be unfair most of the time, especially in pregnancy situations, where some fire women who shouldn’t be in a position to be fired. It seems unfair to me that, unlike men, women need to consider all these aspects.
Society's expectations
From my point of view, society has some expectations regarding women as graphic designers – even if negative. Some friends of mine or family members who are not so into this discipline expect me to present a more feminine style in my work. In terms of graphic style and language or type of projects, there may still exist some unnecessary assumptions on part of some people, who still see the world in blue and pink. However, I think that as a female designer, I have a much wider spectrum of styles that I can experiment with. I see women creating strong and irreverent things in terms of colour and style, as well as the opposite.
I think that gender-wise, women are expected to only reach senior positions, and not have a director or leader role like men are more common to have. I notice that sometimes, people don’t have high expectations and usually expect women to fail and give up on entrepreneurship. I don’t feel as much encouraged by some people to aspire to a leadership position, like founding and running a company, as some of my male colleagues have. Hence, when I discover a successful female designer, I always get hopeful and proud.
Female visibility
From my perspective, female visibility is very low, and there is a lot to grow in this area. In order for there to be more female names in the History of Design, there has to be an awareness of its importance. It won’t be the natural course of things that will lead to more women appearing. Therefore, I think there has to be an obligation to include the female gender.
Inequality is invisible most of the time. Until we feel it in our own skin or come across a specific case, many people are oblivious to it. It is difficult to show it when people don’t realize it exists. Schools, colleges and companies should aim to reach a common found where women can level with male creatives. At least, this is the reality I would like to live.
It inspires me to see women starting their career as powerful CEOs and not being afraid to talk about business. I also urge to see more female Design professors in college (there are so many female students, why is there such a difference in numbers?). It is much better now than it was some years ago. Nonetheless, there is still room for improvement in academic recognition, publishing and overall reputation.
Society's expectations
From my point of view, society has some expectations regarding women as graphic designers – even if negative. Some friends of mine or family members who are not so into this discipline expect me to present a more feminine style in my work. In terms of graphic style and language or type of projects, there may still exist some unnecessary assumptions on part of some people, who still see the world in blue and pink. However, I think that as a female designer, I have a much wider spectrum of styles that I can experiment with. I see women creating strong and irreverent things in terms of colour and style, as well as the opposite.
I think that gender-wise, women are expected to only reach senior positions, and not have a director or leader role like men are more common to have. I notice that sometimes, people don’t have high expectations and usually expect women to fail and give up on entrepreneurship. I don’t feel as much encouraged by some people to aspire to a leadership position, like founding and running a company, as some of my male colleagues have. Hence, when I discover a successful female designer, I always get hopeful and proud.
Female visibility
From my perspective, female visibility is very low, and there is a lot to grow in this area. In order for there to be more female names in the History of Design, there has to be an awareness of its importance. It won’t be the natural course of things that will lead to more women appearing. Therefore, I think there has to be an obligation to include the female gender.
Inequality is invisible most of the time. Until we feel it in our own skin or come across a specific case, many people are oblivious to it. It is difficult to show it when people don’t realize it exists. Schools, colleges and companies should aim to reach a common found where women can level with male creatives. At least, this is the reality I would like to live.
It inspires me to see women starting their career as powerful CEOs and not being afraid to talk about business. I also urge to see more female Design professors in college (there are so many female students, why is there such a difference in numbers?). It is much better now than it was some years ago. Nonetheless, there is still room for improvement in academic recognition, publishing and overall reputation.