ONLINE EXHIBITION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We Design

We Design is a series of programs celebrating women, gender-expansive, and BIPOC designers through exhibitions, conversation cards, and a special Design Museum Magazine double issue.

Welcome to the We Design Online Exhibition

Explore designer profiles to learn more about innovative products and strategies at the forefront of contemporary design. Each profile highlights design leaders who use the transformative power of design for social good.

 

Interior Design Best of Year 2020 Honoree.

SUPPORTED BY

Precious Bugarin
Precious Bugarin

Creative Director
Precious Bugarin Design LLC

Ade Hassan
Ade Hassan

Founder & Director
Nubian Skin

 

Elyse Ayoung
Elyse Ayoung

Designer
Gensler

Oen Michael Hammonds
Oen Michael Hammonds

Distinguished Design Executive
IBM

 

Taniya Nayak
Taniya Nayak

Interior Designer & Founder
Taniya Nayak Design

 

Fonz Morris
Fonz Morris

Lead Product Designer, Global Conversion & Monetization
Netflix

 

Lani Asunción
Lani Asunción

Artist & activist

Saba Ghole
Saba Ghole

Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer
NuVu Studio

 

Alex Dang
Alex Dang

Senior Advanced Exterior Designer
Mercedes-Benz 

 

 

Phil Freelon
Phil Freelon

Principal & Design Director
Perkins and Will

Shannon Maldonado
Shannon Maldonado

Founder
YOWIE

Maria Molteni
Maria Molteni

Artist & activist
New Craft Artists in Action 

 

Pascale Sablan
Pascale Sablan

Senior Associate
Adjaye Associates

 

 

Clint Ramos
Clint Ramos

Founder
Clint Ramos Design

Angela Medlin
Angela Medlin

Founder
Functional Apparel & Accessories Studio (FAAS)

 

Bless Mazarura
Bless Mazarura

Art Director & Fashion Designer
Bless By Bless & The Army of Luv

 

Liz Ogbu
Liz Ogbu

Founder & Principal
Studio O

 

 

MegZany
MegZany

Street Artist & Curator

Fady Saad
Fady Saad

Founder
Cybernetix Ventures & MassRobotics

 

Fan Bi
Fan Bi

Founder
Blank Label

 

Gabrielle Bullock
Gabrielle Bullock

Director of Global Diversity
Perkins and Will

 

 

Noèl Puèllo
Noèl Puèllo

Artist & Fashion Designer

 

Marli Washington
Marli Washington

Founder
gc2b

 

Read more about the exhibition

We Design is the result of four years of planning, research, relationship building, and design. To develop this exhibition, in 2016, our team formed a committee of advisors made up of experts in design, art, education, career development, equity, human resources, and more. This group of advisors helped us build partnerships and invite individuals and organizations to get involved and share their stories. This work culminated in a physical exhibition that launched in September 2019 and was traveling to venues across Boston, MA, and Portland, OR through mid-March 2020. (See photos from the exhibition here.) With the onset of COVID-19, we had to close our physical exhibitions, but we immediately pivoted to transitioning We Design into an online resource.

Special thanks to our advisory committee, Journee Harris, Mallorie Hsu, Diana Navarrete-Rackauckas, Rachel Boesenberg, Sam Aquillano, Amanda Hawkins, and Sara Magalio, for all of their work on this project.

Designer profiles are organized by impact areas. Learn how design inspires social change in the areas of Arts & Apparel, Community, Graphics, Media & Technology, Objects, Spatial, Systems & Strategy by clicking on the icons and images of each designer. 

 

Arts & Apparel

Focuses on aesthetic expression and anticipating and reflecting cultural and social trends.

See All

Angela Medlin
Angela Medlin

Founder
Functional Apparel & Accessories Studio (FAAS)

jeffstaple
jeffstaple

Founder
Staple Design

Bless Mazarura
Bless Mazarura

Art Director + Fashion Designer
Bless By Bless & The Army of Luv

Community

Focuses on the power of collective creativity by increasing opportunity for participants to be shared visionaries in their communities.

See All

Liz Ogbu
Liz Ogbu

Founder & Principal
Studio O

Silvia López Chavez
Silvia López Chavez

Artist & Designer

Gabrielle Bullock
Gabrielle Bullock

Director of Global Diversity
Perkins and Will

Graphics

Creates and combines symbols, images, and text to visually represent ideas. Graphic design involves product marketing, improving communication, changing the aesthetics of places, and more.

See All

Oen Hammonds
Oen Hammonds

Design Principal
IBM

Kat Holmes
Kat Holmes

Senior Vice President of Design and UX
Salesforce

Sabrina Dorsainvil
Sabrina Dorsainvil

Director of Civic Design
New Urban Mechanics

Media & Technology

Deals with how people access information and create a connected and informed world.

See All

Dr. Rodrigo Salazar Gamarra
Dr. Rodrigo Salazar Gamarra

Health & Tech Innovation Consultant

Saba Ghole
Saba Ghole

Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer
NuVu Studio

Nestor Castaneda
Nestor Castaneda

Senior Composites Engineer
Terrafugia

Objects

Create, plan, and style manufactured goods considering form, function, comfort, accessibility, marketing, sustainability, sales, etc.

See All

Debra Latour
Debra Latour

Occupational Therapy Educator
Prosthetics Designer & Advocate

Paloma Medina
Paloma Medina

Founder & Creative Director
11:11

Marisol Centeno
Marisol Centeno

Founder
Estudio Marisol Centeno & Bi Yuu

Spatial

Shape ideas about spaces and how we navigate them, and ensure that each concept reflects the values and experiences of the people using the spaces.

See All

Elyse Ayoung
Elyse Ayoung

Designer
Gensler

Phil Freelon
Phil Freelon

Principal & Design Director
Perkins and Will

Mikyoung Kim
Mikyoung Kim

Founder
Mikyoung Kim Design

Systems & Strategy

Works with big picture change, and involves masterminding strategic and organizational plans based on understanding all the pieces of a larger puzzle. This field applies to challenges like business growth, education, game play, health care, city planning, and climate change.

See All

Ruwan Jayaweera
Ruwan Jayaweera

Associate Principal
PAE Engineers

Taniya Nayak
Taniya Nayak

Founder 
Taniya Nayak Design

Denise Rush
Denise Rush

Dean of the School of Interior Architecture
Boston Architectural College

Do you know of a creative professional that you would like to see featured in We Design? We welcome your nominations.

Want to take the design stories featured in We Design home with you? Our We Design Conversation Cards and the upcoming We Design Issue of Design Museum Magazine are two ways to learn more about exciting designers working in various design fields. 

 

The We Design Issue | Special Issue

The We Design Issue highlights leaders in the design field that refuse the confines of white supremacy and are creating innovative products and strategies at the forefront of contemporary design. 

We Design Conversation Cards

The We Design discussion deck can be used individually, in small groups, or with larger discussion forums. Within the deck, you’ll find stories from creatives in a variety of industries, along with statistics and topics of discussion around diversity and equity in design professions.

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