This book takes a look at women mainly in graphic design but naturally includes a wider range of careers. A focus on struggles women can face in having a career, a critical comparison to Marxism and accompanying illustrations.
I decided it would be best to read as much as I could about women in graphic design and see what I could find out about women and their careers. Research found that sometimes women are largely over represented with lower paying jobs and part time jobs which creates a glass wall for them. In other words, it is harder to change to other jobs or escaulate in a current one because responsibilities of home and children restrict her flexibility. Going on maternity leave has often resulted in women not being able to return to the same level of job title, glass ceilings are a problem too. There is still a pay gap evident today, why are some jobs paying women less than men for the same activity?
I also talk of gendered toys in this book, something that has always fascinated me, girls play with prams and babies and boys play with cars and tools, yet they both have an equal chance of becoming a parent and driving a car. Readings from others, which I mention, give advice of being confident, ambitious and enthusiastic and generally just trying hard. I talk of Marxism as Marx’s analysis between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat seem familiar to the gender gap in many sections, the want for equality, one party being at an advantage in situations than others, and unequal levels of work.
I have come to conclude that Issues such as being female or becoming pregnant are natural and do not need challenging or changing, and as a female gaphic designer, activity should be focused on building a successful body of design and leading a career based on ability not biology, this is what can be tackled, handled and controlled and as others have proven, can be achieved.
Front cover
The question that inspired me to investigate and create this book
[Extract from Who is she?]
On the 4th December 2006 in New York City, Michael Bierut hosted a panel discussion with an audience at the 92nd street Y about book design, a wide area of graphic design. He then later wrote a review of this online at The Design Observer. A hand written question from an anonymous audience member was put to the panel of Milton Glaser, Chip Kidd and Dave Eggers, asking:
“Why do you – all three of you – suppose there are so few female graphic designers – or at least so few female “super star” graphic designers? It seems for every Paula Scher there are at least five or more male super stars (two of whom are on stage now) – is there a glass ceiling in graphic design?”
(Anonymous cited in Bierut, M, 2006)
Milton Glaser responded with an explanation of:
“Women get pregnant, have children, go home and take care of their children. Those essential years that men are building their careers and becoming visible are basically denied to women who chose to be at home. Unless something very dramatic happens to the nature of the human experience then it’s never going to change. [Nannies and day care] None of them are good solutions.”
(Glaser, M. 2006)
Pages from Who is she?
These posters have been made to accompany WHO IS SHE? They display four qoutes taken from Milton Glaser, Paula Scher, Sir Alan Sugar and Amos Bronson Alcott that tak about women in design. These can be found in discussion within the book. Firstly printed as a three colour screen print, results of reprinting created a more dull, gloomy set of colours that I feel represent these quotes better than the original three colours. It is opinions such as these that inspire me to understand my job as a graphic designer, generally here to communicate and problem solve, where better to start than home.
I really
After reprinting
A few extracts of illustrations
