Baseline Shift Untold Stories of Women in Graphic Design History

The lives and work of diverse unsung heroes of design gathered in smart new book.

Familiar histories of graphic design have placed women in the margins, their work unworthy of discussion and preservation. The good news is that with a little digging, we are confirming that women of many backgrounds and ethnicities have long been active in the profession: running presses in the British colonies, illustrating books in the studios of artistically cutting-edge Harlem, and drawing type in the drafting rooms of major type foundries. This collection of 15 fascinating illustrated essays reveals their stories, countering the history we've been fed and expanding the small canon of (overwhelmingly white) women in graphic design. Baseline Shift tells the stories of auteurs, champions of social justice, and the uncelebrated women who used design to make change, do business, and to make a living. It is essential reading for students and practitioners of graphic design as well as those with an interest in women's history.

Briar Levit is a designer and associate professor of graphic design at Portland Sate University. She conceived of, directed, and produced the feature-length documentary Graphic Means: A History of Graphic Design Production.