In the movie The Incredibles, force of circumstance results in a pair of superheroes giving up a life of daredevil crime fighting to live a more mundane, suburban existence. Their superpowers are not only undervalued but also misunderstood, and so they try to hide them, hoping to fit better into a new, more “normal” life.
In the past, graphic designers had sets of skills that set them apart. An ability to draw or hand render type were seen as somehow beyond the realm of ordinary mortals. Then along came the computer, Google searching, WordArt and clipart libraries. Every Grade 3 pupil can now design a cover for his or her science project at the push of a few buttons.
Not only were our powers snatched away, but suddenly the entire world had also been given them, and were using them in very scary and unsupervised ways. Read any hero comic and you will know that this is not a healthy scenario. Underestimated power in the wrong hands inevitably leads to disaster.
So a Gotham City of design has resulted; badly considered communication proliferates, the untrained are now producing en masse, the norm is poor and the good is undervalued. Any designer who tries to state the case in favour of raising the bar or standing up for what they think is right is usually swamped by the imitators who claim to know better.
So it’s time for a graphic design superhero to emerge like Mr Incredible, to squeeze into that ill-fitting suit that used to differentiate him, and to focus attention once again on his superpowers. We need an icon to help set our profession apart and give it some of the credibility and the respect that it deserves. Someone who uses their seemingly underrated and undervalued skills to solve some global problem that no one ever thought them capable of, someone who has the looks, personality, charisma and contacts to gain international exposure.
What Bill Gates did for geeks, we need someone to do for us (and he did it without many of the aforementioned attributes). No one has ever looked at nerds in the same way since Gates became one of the richest and most powerful men on earth. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility. Stefan Sagmeister could almost be up there as a design superman (if he was just a bit prettier and married a gorgeous movie star).
How much easier our jobs would be if we could throw the hero’s name into a presentation, to borrow from his or her achievements to raise the profile of what it is that we do, to be able to adopt a “Trust me, I know what I’m doing” stance, to once again be looked at as a professional that brings something valuable and special to the table.
So, young, brilliant, gorgeous, self-promoting designers out there – the job is open. All you need to do is solve the global warming crisis via a series of stunning posters and get your own lifestyle programme on MTV. By raising public awareness of what it is we really can do if allowed, you can win the undying gratitude of the world’s graphic design fraternity. I’m not sure if tight lycra outfits would be appropriate, but a kick-ass corporate identity would be sure to materialise!