What AIGA Chicago’s 2018 Awards Mean to Me
When I was asked to be apart of the AIGA Chicago’s award selection committee, I didn’t expect to be brought to tears during the process. Having been skeptical of the organization in the past — from initiatives to awards — I wasn’t sure what was going to be in store. The process for awards slate selection can be pretty opaque, so allow me to guide you through it as a skeptic who has been confused about awards in the past.
The Process
AIGA Chicago’s award selection committee is made up of a few current board members, a previous board member, and design community members as stated in the by laws. After the community nominates potential recipients, we all spent an entire Saturday reviewing each award and each nominee to select the winners.
Much like years past, we had an extremely talented group of nominees, so selecting a winner was no easy task. There was real debate and discussion about each candidate as we evaluated them across a series of metrics. As Chicago’s design community, the Chicago community at large, and generally speaking the entire nation is living during a crucial part of our collective history, we wanted to use these awards to start a new direction.
Not only were we looking at the great work these candidates are doing, but also we evaluated the how they are giving back to the community and pushing the design conversation. We also realized the power these awards have to create a platform for the designers and organizations who win. In this case, we looked at our candidates from the perspective of who could use this platform to get others involved in their work and message. It was a chance for us to signal to the community and say, “Look at the talent we have. This is what a modern designer and design organization looks like.”
The Results
After almost eight hours of being held hostage in a conference room, we selected the slate you can see here.
Personally, I have never been more impressed by AIGA Chicago’s selection. I was taken aback by the discussion and debate that was had, so much so that I was brought to tears — both because this was the first time I had ever seen myself, a black female designer, being celebrated by the community and because of everyone’s willingness to listen to the passion we all had for each award. To really talk about why a person or a company deserved to be recognized.
What does this means to me? It means AIGA isn’t the extremely traditional and stuffy white-boys-club I’d seen in the past. It means AIGA Chicago is finally taking steps to keep up with the times, realizing what makes great design and who can be a designer is changing.
There is no denying this slate is much different than previous years, as we are seeing faces and organizations who don’t look like the AIGA Chicago community we’ve come to expect. This slate is a first step and commitment to expand our community — to include people and voices we typically don’t invite to the the table. All of the winners have been crushing it in the design game, but as a community organization, we haven’t been doing a good job looking outside of our bubble and celebrating more than just a single type of design.
This must end now.
While this is just a first step for AIGA Chicago, this is by no means the last. We’re hoping you, as a community member, will keep us honest with our commitment to reflect all voices in the Chicago design community. We live in a vast, colorful, and diverse city. and it is time for AIGA Chicago to reflect it. We must prioritize the entire Chicago design community, not just the portion north of the loop.
Because we all are AIGA Chicago.
