The identity that gives voice to women designers. An interview with Alba Font

In the interest of the exhibition Here We Are! Women in Design. 1900 - Today. We will be asking a series of questions to women designers who have been part of the project. Today we have the pleasure of interviewing Alba Font, graphic designer responsible for the exhibition's graphics as well as the exclusive Dones x Disseny x Dones catalogue. She has worked on many projects in the cultural field with entities such as the Fundació Joan Brossa, the CCCB, the MACBA, the Disseny Hub Barcelona, the Bòlit - Centre d'Art Contemporani de Girona or the Institut del Teatre, among others. 

As the designer of the exhibition identity, could you talk a little about your inspirations and creative process?

I also drew inspiration from the DHub, including images and typography. After some tests, I arrived at the right concept: playing with typographic elements to allow the designers' faces to emerge from the counterforms. I understand these counterforms as spaces for work and recognition that (even today) we demand and for which we women who work in the world of design fight.

Throughout your collaboration in the project, could you highlight some pieces or designers that you discovered and that particularly caught your attention?

Gunjan Gupta's chairs, for their dimension and aesthetic impact along with their social and cultural inspiration. Louise Brigham's Box Furniture book for being pioneering and meeting a social and economic need in a particular context. Also Marjan van Aubel's solar objects, of simple and elegant beauty, and the futuress.org platform for being an open community on topics that personally interest me such as design, feminism and political and social impact.

Could you share with us any other artist or designer who influences you in your day to day life that is not present in the exhibition?

A subject that fascinates me is the book. It occupies a large part of my research practice, both theoretical and formal, and in this sense, my great reference is Irma Boom, but I'm also very interested in the work of the Catalan artist Mercè Soler and the graphic projects of my friend and colleague, Leticia Ortín.

In terms of the evolution of the design industry and women, what advances do you see or expect in the future? 

This is difficult to predict. A lot of progress has been made compared to the last 120 years, but nothing can be taken for granted. There is hope, but we have to keep fighting. We have to make sure that the ideals of equality that we stand for become widely recognized, rather than just temporary trends.

Biography

Alba Font is a graphic designer and creative director, specialising in cultural projects. She currently works as an editorial and exhibition graphic designer at the Fundació Vila Casas. She is pursuing a Master's degree in Comparative Studies in Literature, Art, and Thought at Pompeu Fabra University. Alba is actively involved in both design and art projects. In 2019, she was awarded the City of Vic Artistic Creation Grant for the development of a free artistic project. She is one of the founders of the Casa de Musas initiative, which focuses on promoting the visibility of female and non-binary profiles in the creative world. She also contributes articles to the digital media platform "El Temps de les Arts" and participates as a speaker in the Visual Arts Section of the Ateneu Barcelonès, alongside Bàrbara Astals.