Things that have been said

Graphic Design Illustration Visual Art
Screenprint depicting the word 'Bossy' in a large, chunky, uppercase stencil-style lettering. The word is in bright orange ink against a white background.
'Bossy' - Screenprint in orange ink

The Background

There is a culture of sexism and misogyny, with one in five UK women “having suffered online abuse or harassment” (Amnesty, 2017). A report in 2016 found that in the workplace, “32% of women have been subject to unwelcome jokes of a sexual nature” and “28% women have been subject to comments of a sexual nature about their body or clothes” (TUC, 2016).

The Everyday Sexism Project was founded by Laura Bates in 2012 to highlight “that sexism exists in abundance in the UK workplace” (The Everyday Sexism Project, 2021). Using Twitter, individuals are encouraged to share their experiences by sharing sexist comments, interactions, and inequalities. By sharing the comments, it highlights what women experience on a daily basis.

Screenprint of the side profile of a woman's face. It is in an outlined style, with the bright red ink making up the features of the hair, eye, nose, lips and cheek. The print is on white paper.
Portrait of a woman #1 - Screenprint in red ink
Screenprint depicting the words 'Take one for the team' in uppercase stencilled hand-lettering. The words are in dark red ink and centrally aligned against a white background.
'Take one for the team' - Screenprint in red ink

The Response

In response to secondary and primary research, I created typographic stencils in hand-drawn type of the things said to individuals identifying as female - or the impact of sexism experienced within the workplace.

I used a mix of screen printing inks and acrylic paint to create visuals from the hand-cut stencils. The hand-drawn nature of the type and the imperfections of the printing methods represent the personal nature of the comments.

Print depicting the words 'get me a coffee' in lowercase, cursive hand-lettering. The lettering looks textured due to the use of a stencil and applying acrylic paint with a sponge. The words are in dark red paint and centrally aligned against a white background.
'Get me a coffee' - Print in red acrylic
This print features the phrase 'shut out' written in uppercase hand-lettering, repeated four times across the piece. The lettering has a textured appearance due to the use of a stencil and acrylic paint applied with a sponge. The words are displayed in black, red, and brown against a white background.
'Shut out' - Print in red, black, and brown acrylics
Screenprint of the side profile of a woman's face. It is in an outlined style, with bold lines and contrasting tones. Black ink makes up the features of the hair, eye and nose. There is a teardrops pattern on the woman's neckline. The print is on white paper.
Portrait of a woman #2 - Screenprint in black ink
Screenprint depicting the words ‘Take one for the team’ in uppercase stencilled hand-lettering. The words are in bright orange ink and centrally aligned against a white background.
'Take the notes' - Screenprint in orange ink