{"id":3594,"date":"2025-10-03T08:55:28","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T06:55:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ull.es\/portal\/noticias\/2025\/10\/03\/una-exposicion-en-la-facultad-de-bellas-artes-reivindica-la-labor-de-las-disenadoras-canarias\/"},"modified":"2026-10-26T09:40:30","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T08:40:30","slug":"una-exposicion-en-la-facultad-de-bellas-artes-reivindica-la-labor-de-las-disenadoras-canarias","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ull.es\/portal\/noticias\/en\/2025\/10\/03\/una-exposicion-en-la-facultad-de-bellas-artes-reivindica-la-labor-de-las-disenadoras-canarias\/","title":{"rendered":"An exhibition at the Faculty of Fine Arts celebrates the work of Canarian designers"},"content":{"rendered":"

As in so many other areas of society, the work of many women who, especially in the past, worked in the field of design has been rendered invisible, to the point that their names are barely known beyond highly specialized circles. The exhibition \u201cThey design here too<\/a>\u201d"It has been set up in the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of La Laguna in order to correct this injustice, disseminating and recognizing the work of the designers who have developed their professional career in the Canary Islands.<\/p>\n

The exhibition will remain open until October 10th and is co-organized by the Cultural Design Classroom of the University of La Laguna, whose director is a professor at the faculty. Noa Real Garc\u00eda<\/a>, She is the principal investigator of the research that led to this project. The exhibition was made possible thanks to grants for cultural classrooms awarded by the Vice-Rectorate for Culture and University Extension and the Tenerife Island Council, and also received support from... Research and Innovation Group in Design<\/a> and the University Institute for Women's Studies of the academic institution, as well as the Association of Design Professionals and Companies of the Canary Islands<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>As Real Garc\u00eda explains, the exhibition is the result of a research process that began with a snowball sampling methodology, attempting to identify as many female designers as possible, both active and retired, who are either of Canarian origin or from elsewhere but have developed their careers in the archipelago. This process led to the identification of around one hundred individuals, who were contacted via videoconference. All of their names are included in the exhibition, and several of their works are on display.<\/p>\n

Thus, the space is divided into several sections: one of them accounts for the group of designers contacted, highlighting some phrases that testify to the difficulties they have faced; another section is dedicated to the researchers from the public universities of the Canary Islands who have been in charge of disseminating the work of these professionals; the walls, screens and displays show various works by the protagonists; and on a side wall extends a large chronological axis that runs through the history of design from 1751, the date of opening of the first printing workshop in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, to the present, pointing out in it great milestones and the female presence in that tradition.<\/p>\n

Of all the designers contacted, five were selected for in-depth interviews, which are also shown in the exhibition space. They are Maria Luisa Hodgson<\/a>, for her academic work and professional career at Litograf\u00edas Romero; Elena Corchero, for her international profile related to technology applied to fashion; Cristina Saavedra, whose work at TEA stands out; Claudia Bethencourt, who has specialized in branding; and Carla Garrido<\/a>, illustrator and also university professor.<\/p>\n

Real Garc\u00eda explains that the joint meetings with the designers were very exciting and emotional, since they brought together professionals from different generations who exchanged experiences, so that the veterans who started their careers in the 60s advised those who are now starting their careers on how to solve certain situations.\"\"<\/a> Furthermore, she points out that the fact that all the participants in those virtual meetings were women created a very special, close and conducive atmosphere for opening up.<\/p>\n

The exhibition curator explains that the history of design as it has been disseminated until now can give the false impression that there were no women dedicated to this field in the past. But the same is true as in fields like literature and art: in fact, there were women, but they had to hide behind male pseudonyms or even allow men to sign their work.<\/p>\n

The demerit of women in this field goes back not so long: Noa Real recalls the testimony of Mar\u00eda Luisa Hodgson, who explained that as a young woman she was hired by a company based on the material she had sent as a sample and, upon seeing that she was a woman, they decided not to employ her because she would be the only girl on the entire staff and that \u201cwould be strange\u201d.<\/p>\n

Motherhood was another topic that came up during these conversations among designers, to the point that the veteran Ena Cardenal gave the younger ones the strong advice: "freeze your eggs." She explained that in the early years of a design career, it's difficult to start a family, and in fact, the sector is known for its high rates of late motherhood. For this reason, the unusual case of Carla Garrido, a young professional with a large family, was also highlighted.<\/p>\n

As a complement to this exhibition, the conference \u201cPioneers of Graphic Design: Visibility and Recognition of Their Contribution to the Profession\u201d was held on December 30th, during which \"\"<\/a>Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles Fortea Castillo, a tenured professor at the University Center for Arts and Design in Barcelona, explained the historical development of women in the field of design in Catalonia; the designer Teresa Jular P\u00e9rez-Alfaro focused on the situation in Murcia; while Noa Real explained the case of the Canary Islands.<\/p>\n

The following person also collaborated in the preparation of this exhibition, specifically in the research aspect:, Rosario Hern\u00e1ndez Borges<\/a>, Alicia Morales Pereyra-Garc\u00eda<\/a>, Arianna Mar\u00eda Fanio Gonz\u00e1lez<\/a>, D\u00e1cil Roca Vera<\/a>, Carlos Jim\u00e9nez Mart\u00ednez<\/a>, Alfonso Ruiz Rallo<\/a> y Bernardo Candel Sanju\u00e1n<\/a>; And in the graphic design section, Martina Alonso Vera and Copo Meraki. Based on this work, several articles are planned for publication in research journals, and a catalog will be published as a first step in preserving the memory of these women who have significantly contributed to the development of the design sector in the Canary Islands.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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