Dominique Falla encourages the global typography community to #EmbraceEquity

 February 07, 2023

Meet Associate Professor Dominique Falla, Deputy Director of Learning and Teaching at the Queensland College of Art (QCA) at Griffith University in Australia. Dominique is known as the “Tactile Typographer” due to the specific nature of her art practice.

She has a lifelong passion for being creative, in addition to encouraging and supporting others, so they can shine their own creative light. As a result, in addition to her academic duties, Dominique founded TYPISM, a global type and lettering community helping creatives make a living from their passion. TYPISM regularly hosts a unique type and lettering conference, publishes outstanding typography books, and hosts a thriving online network for creative entrepreneurs.

Dominique is calling on the global typography community to embrace their creative superpower, and for International Women's Day (IWD) 2023 to use their creative talents to #EmbraceEquity through showcasing their skills.

Supporting the #EmbraceEquity campaign theme, Dominique oversees IWD's annual lettering challenge. 

Learn more about the IWD TYPISM challenge here.

Forging change in the creative industry

TYPISM was born out of Dominique's desire need to change both her career and the creative industry. 

Tired of being undervalued by digital technology and outsourcing, Dominique began developing her own unique lettering style.

Sharing her work online, Dominique started building an impressive global audience and was being highly valued for her impressive creativity. 

Coaching creatives to build their own thriving business

Drawing on her background in freelance illustration and design education, Dominique created the Funnelancing™ Movement where she coaches creative freelancers to redefine the way they value their work, alongside her signature course, Creative Funnel Formula.

Dominique also generously shares her expertise via the Creative Spark podcast that helps listeners harness their creative superpower to build a business.

Here Dominique chats with International Women's Day about her work, what it's like to be a professional typographer, and why encouraging women to embrace their creative superpower serves to help #EmbraceEquity across the global typography industry.

What's happening for women in the typography scene?

In recent years, the type and lettering scene has seen increasing recognition and appreciation of the work done by female designers.

The 2022 Typism Summit featured some incredible women making a massive contribution to the field, such as Annica Lydenberg and her You Are Not Alone mural project, and Kim Tran-Flores launching her calligraphy membership.

Why is celebrating women's work and visibility key in this industry?

Celebrating women across the creative industry is key because it shows an appreciation for the unique perspectives, ideas, and experiences that women can bring to the field. It also helps to create an environment of diversity and inclusion, which encourages more women to enter the field and helps to create a more equitable and welcoming workplace.

Additionally, celebrating the work and visibility of women in the industry helps to foster collaboration and support between female professionals, which can lead to greater innovation and creativity in the field.

What opportunities have the TYPISM book given women?

The TYPISM book has given women in the typography industry an opportunity to have their work and perspectives represented and celebrated. The book features over 70 female type designers from around the world, and provides an opportunity for these designers to share their stories and showcase their work.

Additionally, the TYPISM book serves as a great source of inspiration and education for both aspiring and experienced type designers. Through the book, women in the industry are given the opportunity to have their voices heard and their contributions recognized.

Are women fully and confidently embracing their creative superpower enough?

While there has been progress in recognizing and celebrating the creative power of women, more work needs to be done to ensure that women are fully and confidently embracing their creative superpower.

Women in the creative fields still face many challenges such as lower pay and limited opportunities for advancement, which can make it difficult for them to feel comfortable and confident in their creative prowess.

Additionally, many women are still underrepresented in the creative fields, which can lead to a lack of visibility and recognition for their talents.

To ensure that women are fully and confidently embracing their creative superpower, it is important to create a more equitable and inclusive environment in the creative fields, and to provide women with the necessary resources and support to pursue their creative ambitions.

If you had to name three favorite fonts, what would they be and why?

My favorite fonts Montserrat and Avenir Next because they are both classic, easy-to-read typefaces that are versatile and timeless, and Honey Pie because my friend Aurelie Maron designed it, and we use it for the Typism Community logo [pictured above]. Some of the IWD community will certainly recognize Aurelie's work from her IWD 2022 #BreakTheBias creativity. 

Montserrat and Avenir Next are great for both digital and print use, and are particularly popular for web and mobile design.

Montserrat is a modern, geometric sans-serif that looks great at both large and small sizes and I use it for my own branding as well as the Typism web font.

Avenir Next is a contemporary take on the classic Avenir font, which is a modern sans-serif typeface, and it looks so elegant.

Honey Pie is super playful and cute and makes a memorable logo font.

What's one of the hardest things about being a typographer?

Creating a successful typeface requires a high level of attention to detail and precision, and the typographer must have a deep understanding of the technical aspects of type design, such as kerning, spacing, and legibility.

It's also difficult to have people value your work when there are so many free fonts available, and staying current with the latest technologies in the field can also be challenging because the technology is constantly evolving and typographers must continually educate themselves and adapt to new tools and techniques such as variable fonts.

What's your creative IWD 2023 #EmbraceEquity contribution?

My playful #EmbraceEquity creation (above) was designed using fonts and textures by Cruzine - and kicks off the call for further women typographers worldwide to showcase their own #EmbraceEquity creations across social media using the hashtags #IWDtypism #EmbraceEquity #IWD2023.

Check out the call-to-action here for the 4th Annual IWD TYPISM lettering challenge inviting lettering artists worldwide to show their support for the IWD Women Creatives Mission by creating artwork that highlights this year's #EmbraceEquity campaign theme.

The world can't wait to see your typography talent - and we can't wait to promote it.