Review of "So Designers Have Girls" Lecture Review

"Please name at least 3 Taiwanese female designers within 10 seconds!" With a blank mind, have you ever wondered why so many women in the design department have disappeared from the media and society? Are there really so few girls doing design? This lecture invited independent graphic designer Misc: Lin Jialing (hereinafter referred to as: Misc), and the host with the same background in design: tattoo artist Chen Lu (hereinafter referred to as: Lu), came to share the works of buried female designers, Talk about various gender phenomena.

Lu: Before the lecture, I would like to talk to you about the title of today's event "So there are girls in designers". I believe that many friends who are concerned about women's rights and interests hear the title of the lecture and feel that the question is not polite, but actually think about it, this is a lot The predicaments women will encounter in their careers or workplaces, so today we are here to decipher the question "So designers have girls".

Misc: I also want to respond to the theme of this time. In fact, I have always disliked gender differentiation, so I just saw some people express their dissatisfaction in the comments, but I think this means that everyone sees that the rights and interests of men and women should be equal. , should not be separated, you don't need to be angry with this name, after all, this is a question, and I hope it will cause more discussion.

Lu: Please introduce yourself to everyone.

Misc: I have been involved in design for many years. At present, my main business is design. I do a lot of albums, movies, albums and other works in the art and literature industry, but people will start to notice me, probably from "Your Children Are Not Some people may know me from my podcast "The Designer's Ragnarok".

Lu: At what age did you find yourself wanting to design?

Misc: I have been fond of drawing since I was a child. Since kindergarten, then elementary school and middle school, I love to participate in drawing competitions. But I didn't come from a major. It seems that I can do design, so I found out what I want to do quite early, and I have a strong interest in images.

Lu: At present, there are actually few boys and many girls in the design department, but the designers who are easier to see on various media platforms are boys. What are your views or observations on this phenomenon?

Misc: I had such doubts before, but after years of observation, I think I have found the reason. It may really be the difference between the left brain and the right brain, as well as the physiological structure. Although I don't want to admit it, I think it's true. It also happens in all walks of life. Although I don't like being divided, girls may really be emotionally rich, while boys are curious about how to make more money. ; Then there is a difference in physical strength. When I was in my 20s, I could stay up all night every day without affecting my body, but now I can’t stay up too often, but compared to many male designers in their 30s and 40s, they have never had such troubles. , so I think it is the physical relationship and the difference in the whole structure, which leads to the feeling that there are more male designers on the line now. Then in the era of self-media, if you know how to operate a community, it will be easy to be seen, so let’s go back to how much you expect from yourself? Do you really wish more people knew or saw you? So what you have to do in addition to the work itself is community management. Whether the girls are less conscious of being a community, I think that is just a chance, just a good thing.

Lu: Could this also have something to do with society's stereotyped expectation that men need to support their families?

Misc: I think there are too. From the birth of the original family, from education, including our family, we will inevitably encounter parents who have their own expectations for boys and girls, so we have to start from the source, which is actually education, and education in the past did Education that de-differentiates males and females leads to subconsciously affecting values.

Lu: Since most professionals in society are presupposed to be male, do you have any thoughts on being called a "female designer"?

Misc: I used to be quite repulsive, because the public won't talk about "male designers", so why do they call me "female designers"? It seems that female designers are rare, but now I realize that many concepts need to be educated. The other party realizes that I am a man or a woman, which is not so important. The point is that I can show my strength and make good use of my own. Characteristics and advantages of work. Labels are given by others. When you can convince the other party with strength or professionalism, they will not care about your gender. If everyone removes labels and focuses on what they are doing, the public, including your owner, actually will change.

Lu: Is there anything special about women in visual design?

Misc: I think like I said before, there may be a lot of emotional things, but like I put my works online in the past, many people will think that I am a boy, and many people will judge the temperament of the work. The gender of the designer. However, in today's society, regardless of gender, emotional and rational things have already been communicated with each other. Now I can't say that women's works must be what they are, or what advantages they have. I think such a blurred line is quite good. .

Lu: I also think it’s good to have blurred boundaries. In the past, men might not be encouraged to express their emotions, and they were less able to be emotionally unrestrained boys. Let’s continue this question, so you think that many characteristics are actually personal characteristics and have nothing to do with gender?

Misc: It should really be back to personal characteristics. Like my appearance, I may be softer, but I am more rigid and strict with myself at work, and my personal characteristics are also rich in emotion, which will be reflected in the in my work. But I have also encountered situations where I was not selected because I was a girl. They said to me directly, "Because the boss is worried that I am a girl, I may be relatively unfamiliar with this subject." It was indeed frustrating at first, but I gradually I also don't think it matters, after all, sometimes if you insist on proving, you may not be able to prove anything. Of course, this is still more common among elders or some more conservative or traditional people. When the age is revised down, people will not be so differentiated about the gender of designers.

Lu: If your biological gender is female, apart from the emotional and physical differences you just mentioned, what impact do you think gender has on the role of a designer? Is there a way to change these natural differences?

Misc: I really think it's still physical strength. For example, girls have a period every month, which is really a disadvantage. Even my clients often tell me, please take good care of your body. I often envy my male designer friends, but they can keep rushing without taking a break. I think this is the only one that has the greatest impact. In terms of eliminating differences, I have subjects who use exercise to change the difference in physical strength, but outside of physical strength Most of the differences are returned to personal characteristics, and you should show your own characteristics well, so that people who like your characteristics can find you.

Lu: You have participated in the Ladybug project, have you received any feedback or brought you reflections so far?

Misc: Li Junciman mentioned the Lady bug project to me a long time ago. At that time, she invited many female designers to hold the exhibition together. Noticed that the designer also has girls. Ladybug is a website that provides female designers to expose their works. Last year, she asked me if she could provide her works to the website that was fast-tracked at the time. Later, some people did recognize me through this platform. I think it's really good for someone in Taiwan to do this kind of thing. It can give everyone a chance to meet more female designers in Taiwan. Although some people will say that the project itself is also a kind of differentiation, I think Ladybug is like today. The theme of the lecture is the same, it is good to be able to arouse discussion and attention, which means that everyone has more self-awareness of sexuality.

Lu: Taiwan's design circle is relatively friendly compared to other design industries, but women still have an important issue: marriage. Traditionally, women have more requirements in marriage. What kind of imagination do you have for designers who take into account both family and work?

Misc: I think it’s a really great thing to be able to do both. It’s really great for both genders. When I think back to my work in a design company day and night, my own family couldn’t take care of it. I just thought about some famous designers in the industry. It seems that most of them are not married and have children. It may be difficult to form a family if they love their work. But there are two modes in the industry, one is to accept the case in the name of an individual, and the other is to have the support of the company behind it. Individual recipients have to run the community and think about the company's management, which takes a lot of time. However, working under the company's brand, there are many designers who are also very good, but because of the support of the company's team, there is no distinction between men and women. Many have already started families.

Lu: You have also worked in industries other than design before. In different industries, have you worked well in the workplace and then left after entering the family?

Misc: Seriously, it happens in all walks of life. I used to work in a boutique business, and I was a designer at the time. The entire team was made up of girls. At that time, when an employee was pregnant, the boss would have a headache. This may be related to the boss. He thinks that employees can be replaced. If a female employee is pregnant, it is better to find a new one than to stay without pay. However, I think to get back to the core of the problem, taking care of family and work, you have to communicate well with your partner. Because when you enter the family, you cooperate in a team battle, and everything can be communicated. After all, you will enter the family because your family loves you, and everyone can communicate. Then if you are raising the child by yourself, I think it is still ok, maybe don't be too perfect to ask yourself about "being a competent mother", as long as you have a planned schedule and do your best.

Lu: What do you think the existence of female role models means to students? Did Misc also have a female role model in his school days and now?

Misc: My female role models are all rock musicians, like Patti Smith, you may know that she is a very avant-garde rock musician, but I don't think the "female role model" itself is that important, because I want to be able to de-label, not have to Focus on "she is a female designer", but because she likes this work. I like listening to rock music, and I am very interested in the "works" of the musicians. Those will be the nutrients for my design. I return to paying attention to the "characters, works" themselves, and let these become models. Like I like Shigeo Fukuda, Matisse and Dali, but I don't notice them because they are boys, but because of their works. It is a good thing that the awareness of women's equality in society is getting higher and higher, but we also have to lose a lot of existing thinking about women. Just like in the workplace, biological men and biological women have their own advantages. There is no need to deny things. If the core reason is really physiological, then let's accept it! Just get rid of thinking and thinking.

Lu: The audience asked you a question. Do you think the design circle is saturated, and if your ability is not top-notch, will you be easily eliminated?

Misc: I don't think so. Everyone finds their own way to survive, so you don't need to worry about whether you are the best. And everyone's definition of top mark or achievement is different. As mentioned above, is it a better achievement to be seen by more people and famous online? There are also some people who may not be known, but he has a strong working ability and has received a lot of cases. Maybe he makes more money than famous designers, which may also be an achievement for him. So in addition to labeling gender, you can also label achievement. Everyone thinks about what they want, and returning to themselves is the most important thing.

SyndAvant brings together creative people who are willing to apply their creativity and expertise to transform and advance society. We call them Avantists. This series of interviews will show you how these Avantists manage their professions, use their talents and influence, and then form a positive influence on society.

Planning: Guo Ke Writing: Zhang Yujie Photography: vvaynelinn
Proofreading: Vera