An Anthology of Blackness: The State of Black Design

by Terresa Moses (Editor), Omari Souza (Editor), Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall (Foreword by)

Overview

An adventurous collection that examines how the design field has consistently failed to attract and support Black professionals—and how to create an anti-racist, pro-Black design industry instead.

An Anthology of Blackness examines the intersection of Black identity and practice, probing why the design field has failed to attract Black professionals, how Eurocentric hegemony impacts Black professionals, and how Black designers can create an anti-racist design industry. Contributing authors and creators demonstrate how to develop a pro-Black design practice of inclusivity, including Black representation in designed media, anti-racist pedagogy, and radical self-care. Through autoethnography, lived experience, scholarship, and applied research, these contributors share proven methods for creating an anti-racist and inclusive design practice.

The contributions in An Anthology of Blackness include essays, opinion pieces, case studies, and visual narratives. Many contributors write from an intersectional perspective on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and ability. Each section of the book expands on community-driven concerns about the state of the design industry, design pedagogy, and design activism. Ultimately, this articulated intersection of Black identity and Black design practice reveals the power of resistance, community, and solidarity—and the hope for a more equitable future. With a foreword written by design luminary Elizabeth (Dori) Tunstall, An Anthology of Blackness is a pioneering contribution to the literature of social justice.

Contributors
Kprecia Ambers, Jazmine Beatty, Anne H. Berry, John Brown VI, Nichole Burroughs, Antionette D. Carroll, Jillian M. Harris, Asher Kolieboi, Terrence Moline, Tracey L. Moore, Lesley-Ann Noel, Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon, Jules Porter, Stacey Robinson, Melanie Walby, Jacinda N. Walker, Kelly Walters, Jennifer White-Johnson, Maya Aduba Williams, S. Alfonso Williams

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780262048668
Publisher:	MIT Press
Publication date:	10/31/2023
Pages:	264
Sales rank:	524,291
Product dimensions:	6.19(w) x 9.31(h) x 0.91(d)

About the Author

Terresa Moses is the Creative Director of Blackbird Revolt, Director of Design Justice, and Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at the University of Minnesota. She created Project Naptural, co-created Racism Untaught, and is both a core team member of African American Graphic Designers and a collaborator with the Black Liberation Lab.

Omari Souza is an Assistant Professor of Communication Design at the University of North Texas, the organizer of the State of Black Design Conference, and a Design Researcher at Capital One. Formerly, he worked at VIBE magazine, CBS Radio, and Case Western Reserve University.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Dori Tunstall ix

Introduction
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza xiii

1. Black Design Industry + Organizations

An Introduction to Black Design Industry + Organizations 
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza 3

The Ontology of Black Design 
S. Alfonso Williams 7

Stewardship and the Survival of Black Design Communities 
Terrence Moline 13

Shattering Spaces of Othering: Building a Creative Culture of Creativity, Blackness, and Brown Power
Antionette D. Carroll, supported by Maya Aduba Williams 21

So, You Want to Solve the Diversity Problem in Design
Jacinda N. Walker 31

Why Asking for a List Won't Solve Racial Disparities 
Melanie Walby 43

Ain't I a Woman
Omari Souza 57

Using Video Games to Champion Justice and Expand Imaginations of Superheroes 
Jules Porter 69

Designing a Black Future
John Brown VI 79

2. Black Design Pedagogy

An Introduction to Black Design Pedagogy 
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza 87

Black Student Perceptions of Design Courses at an Elite Private University
Lesley-Ann Noel 91

Design's Ledger of White Supremacy: Constructing a Critical Race Pedagogy to Shape Design Futures 
Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon 101

African Design: Origins and Migration
Jillian M. Harris 113

#BlackHistoryMatters
Stacey Robinson 124

The Movement Imprinted
Terresa Moses 129

Using Exhibition Design to Support Political Engagement, Active Learning, and Civic Participation
Anne H. Berry and Kelly Walters 137

3. Black Design Activism 

An Introduction to Black Design Activism 
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza 151

Getting to the Root: An Exhibition Catalog on Natural Hair
Jazmine Beatty 155

Paving the Way: Black Designers Then and Now
Nichole Burroughs 163

Amplifying the Black Voice through Design 
Terresa Moses 175

Peace of Mind 
Kprecia Ambers 196

PANTHERS VOTE! A Studio Project Exposing Past Voter Suppression Methods to a Collegiate Population That Has Been Historically Disenfranchised
Tracey L. Moore 201

Corrections, Curses, and Spoils: How Vote by Mail Information and Service Design Disenfranchised Black Voters in the 2020 US Election Cycle
Asher Kolieboi 211

Amplifying Accessibility and Abolishing Ableism: Designing to Embolden Black Disability Visual Culture
Jennifer White-Johnson 221

Epilogue
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza 231

Acknowledgments 
Terresa Moses and Omari Souza 233

Notes 234

Editorial Reviews

Best books of 2023 — Architecture & Design, Financial Times

"Born from the Black Lives Matter movement, this collection on design responds to a field in which black voices remain severely underserved and often unheard...A valuable and provocative addition."
–The Financial Times

"Unapologetic is the only way to describe this anthology; it’s a scholarly “state of the union,” with design practitioners, researchers, scholars, and educators documenting their groundbreaking perspectives, research, and advocacy. An Anthology of Blackness offers bold treatises of where Black designers have been, where we are, and where we are heading, bridging the gap between the past and today’s advancement of the Black designer in the global design conversation."
–Print

“This collection of essays, opinion pieces, case studies, and visual narratives looks toward the horizon of an anti-racist design industry. Divided into three sections that focus on the design industry itself, surrounding pedagogy, and activism, the book analyzes how Black graphic designers—from the early 20th century to today—have called for social justice while exploring the legacy of Eurocentric beauty standards, especially hair. There’s a brisk survey of African histories of making in the pedagogy section, as well as an investigation of why Black students don’t enroll in design electives. The portion on the design industry offers technocratic and heartfelt suggestions: for example, using video games to attract Black youth to design, and improving practices of arts and cultural stewardship. With intersectional perspectives on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and ability, the anthology reminds the reader: 'Design is not a master’s tool.''
–Metropolis

"The history of design as we know it excludes centuries of highly skilled and creative production by Africans and the African diaspora. This book – edited by Terresa Moses of the University of Toronto and Omari Souza of the University of North Texas – seeks to turn things around. Starting from the media attention sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, it delves into the protests of African American communities in the 1920s and 1960s and examines the creative tactics they employed. Building on these historical roots, the book leads us to question design's ability to challenge racial biases, forms of oppression, and establish itself as a truly inclusive social practice."
–Domus

"This collection provides essays, case studies, and opinions along with visual storytelling. Sparked by the Black Lives Matter movement, the book looks closely at why the design field/industry has failed to produce Black professionals. The contributors write from perspectives of race, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity. The book is divided into three sections—"Black Design Industry and Organizations," "Black Design Pedagogy," and "Black Design ." The pedagogy section includes a brisk survey and an investigation of why BlaActivismck students tend not to enroll in design classes. The collection looks at where Black designers have been, where they are today, and where they are going. The book also offers guidance for how to enrich the design industry with Black representation, antiracist pedagogy, and radical self-care. For example, there are discussions of using video games to generate interest in the field on the part of Black youth and how Black designers can impact an antiracist design industry. The contributors describe their personal experiences, including their struggles, solutions, and research through proven methods. They offer their versions of ethnographic studies of applied solutions in hopes of an inclusive design practice and an equitable future."
–Choice

“An adventurous collection that examines how the design field has consistently failed to attract and support Black professionals—and how to create an anti-racist, pro-Black design industry instead…Through autoethnography, lived experience, scholarship, and applied research, these contributors share proven methods for creating an anti-racist and inclusive design practice.”
–Diversity in Action

From the Publisher