Graphic Design student creates visual campaign to promote gender equality at York St John 

A third year Graphic Design student has won York St John’s first ever Athena Swan design award for her “eye-catching and rigorous” creative campaign to promote gender equality at the University. 

Fi Rowntree’s work is now being made into posters, banners, digital graphics, badges and stickers, ready to be rolled out across the University’s York and London campuses for the new academic year.  

The Athena Swan Charter is a framework used across the globe to support and transform gender equality within higher education (HE) and research.  York St John has been accredited a Bronze Award which celebrates our continued commitment to promoting fairness and challenging prejudice.  

As part of this work, second and third year Graphic Design students were given a live brief to creatively raise awareness of the Athena Swan charter. They were asked to think of innovative ways to bring Athena Swan and gender equality work to life for staff and students. This could be through highlighting events, workshops and other existing work at York St John, or they could choose to engage the audience with the wider gender equality agenda.  

Fi chose a wordmark logo to put the name Athena Swan front and centre in her campaign. Each of the ten letters are from a different typeface which is a nod to the ten academic subjects Athena Swan covers. The typefaces chosen are designed by a mix of male and female type designers which enforces what the brand stands for: gender equality. The general aesthetic of the designs takes influence from riot girl/punk style and uses purple and green, the colours of the Suffragette movement. 

She said: “I hope the designs connect with people, and they are seen as almost as a movement and something they want to be involved in. I want them to have a positive impact by way of inspiring people to shift from being a passive bystander to getting involved and supporting and effecting positive change. 

“I was genuinely surprised to be chosen as I thought what I had produced may be a bit too ‘out there’ for an academic environment but it’s good to see the University taking a risk on being disruptive. It’s a huge confidence booster and I can’t wait to see how everything will look.  

“It feels amazing - I imagine it’s how bands must feel when they land a number one single.” 

John Temperton, Course Leader in Graphic Design, explained why Fi’s work stood out for him:  

"The brief was especially challenging and complex, requiring students to think about a difficult, abstract problem.  

“Fi's outcome responds to this in very direct and clear way by appealing to both a specialist and broad demographic without resorting to an overly literal or generalised approach.” 

Clare Nattress, Senior Lecturer in Graphic Design and Athena Swan co-lead, said: 

"Live projects like the Athena Swan brief allow students to focus on their practical abilities but also the complexity of responding to real-world problems. It was a fantastic opportunity to allow students to think more critically about the inequalities, injustices and challenges facing society today and to help them promote a fairer society. 
 
“The students produced vibrant, engaging and impactful work across Year 2 and Year 3.  

“Fiona's work was eye-catching, underpinned with conceptual rigour. The judging panel felt it would stand out across the York and London campus to help increase engagement with the Athena Swan Charter. The academic team are very proud, and we believe this project has increased students' confidence in responding to challenging and timely briefs."  

Read more about Athena Swan and gender equality work at York St John University