Beatrice Caciotti

Do you know many women designers? No, I personally only know one type designer and a couple of calligraphers. When and how did you become interested in typography? During the master’s degree course, I felt the need to deepen my knowledge of typography probably because during my path I did not have the opportunity to do a whole course specifically about it.

Where did you study? Three years in Industrial Design at the ISIA in Rome, Master in Design, visual communication and multimedia at the Sapienza in Rome and Type design course at the CFP Bauer in Milan.

What are the last 3 typefaces that you used? Jäger di Vjtype, Archivo di Google, Degular di Ohno type.

Do you consider yourself a feminist? Yes.

Is there a figure you’re particularly inspired by in type design? Do you think there are too few women in the role of leader in the field of type design? No, there’s not a particular figure I’m inspired by and yes, I think there are still few women leaders in the field, but I also believe that things are changing.

In universities where you study graphic design, students usually don’t notice a lot of gender gap, but when they graduate, it’s inevitable to see it in the work world. Have you ever noticed this? Why do you think it happens? I believe that what happens in the working world, limited to the field of design, is only the manifestation of a wider phenomenon that especially in Italy unfortunately, is still a problem of considerable importance. If there are still those who argue that quotas for women are themselves a symbol of discrimination in the workplace, I do not think it is so difficult to meet women who have had discriminating experiences in the workplace, even simply asking for information about your emotional sphere and whether you intend to have children or not during a job interview. In my opinion this happens because there are still many prejudices about women in the world of work (men do not have pregnancies, do not have menstruation, do not have mood swings, do not have fragility, are more likely to be leaders etc.) but also because obviously this state has not done enough to rule certain phenomena. Do you think that people associate typography with technical work and therefore purely male? I don’t see it. Surely until some time ago it was so, I think now with the new generations the paradigm is changing considerably.

Do you think that people associate calligraphy with decorative and therefore purely feminine work? I think they have less difficulty in seeing it as a place where women can perform as well as men, or even better, always because of gender stereotypes. Have you noticed a change in the gender gap in type design since 2018? Yes.

“Currently, the relationship between typography and gender stereotypes is still scarcely addressed, and when it is it’s regarding marketing and thus audience targeting. It is obvious that the use of gender attributes in the context of typography is not based on the lines drawn by the letters, but rather on cultural aspects. ”

-Beatrice Caciotti