Women in Design

by Alicia Johnson

I’m pleased to be writing a commentary for this magazine, but I’m worn down that it’s about Women in Design. I'm pretty tired of what seems to be the only topic women are asked to discuss in this industry — Women in Design. For instance, there’s a big hoody-do this Summer that How Magazine is sponsoring. There are about a hundred panelists and speakers. There are a lot of women included — but apparently the only thing they have to discuss is Women in Design.

I’m sure that some of these women have opinions on the purpose and value of design as a force in our society. I’d be willing to bet that each of them has an opinion on the role of a good creative director on a project. I would hope that any one of them could participate in a lively debate on The New Typography. And I personally would be interested to hear how anyone — male or female — gets up day after day and faces the challenge of doing work they believe in.

But I, like the women in that conference, have been asked to speak on the issue of Women in Design, so I’ll follow the adage “write about what you know.” There are two women designers in my firm. They weren't hired because they are women. They weren't hired because I prefer to work with women. They weren't hired because I feel a responsibility to hire women. They were hired because their portfolios blew me away. Because they had a desire to produce excellent work. Because each expressed an incredible willingness to do what it takes to turn out great work, and each had a unique vision that had obvious strength, determination and fearlessness. In short, they were hired on merit.

I hope that those who read this article, or who are asked to address the issue of Women in Design, have the peace of mind of knowing that they are succeeding on merit, not gender. I hope this because the very act of qualifying your work on this basis can be demoralizing. It can be destructive. Witness the controversy within minority communities around affirmative action. If it is true that the women’s movement follows closely the civil rights movement, then perhaps a women’s uproar is coming. An uproar that says “ENOUGH. Talk to me about my work, my ideas, my contributions to society.”

Until then I will take advantage of the opportunity to discuss Women in Design. With each opportunity I will acknowledge the necessity for the discussion, and I will move forward with this attitude: Merit’s the thing. Next topic.

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Alicia Johnson is co-creative director at Johnson & Wolverton, a Portland, Oregon-based design firm. She has spoken numerous times on Women in Design.