Less than 0.1% of creative agencies are founded by women.
That number right there is pretty much the story of how BlackPaint started. Tired of the lack of representation in creative leadership and the condoned culture of misogyny in their field, our founders realized that if they wanted better for the industry and other people coming into it, it was on them to do something about it. So they quit their ad agency jobs and started BlackPaint, incorporating their passion for art activism into their business model and their personal pursuit for change.
From day one it’s been BlackPaint’s not-so-covert covert mission to help make the industry safer and more equitable for underrepresented creatives. Cool. How?
1. Nurturing the next generation of fearless leaders in our industry through our Creative Leaders Fellowship Program — a formal mentorship and training program focused on starting and running a creative business with priority given to creatives who identify as BIPOC, queer, transgender, non-binary and/or or women.
2. Spreading the truth about this stuff by sharing the story behind the stats as part of our “Truth” speaking series — a radical talk we give to students and professional groups across the country.
3. Partnering with other industry advocates to create tools like this Resource Guide that help educate our peers in the creative industry on how they can join us in making change.
4. And, on the creative tip, we started a collaborative street-level awareness campaign aimed at confronting the creative industry’s condoned culture of misogyny and racism using design, music, art, and other creative expressions.
Ours is truly a field that’s been much slower to progress than most. And that has got to change. Not just for people working in it, but for the millions who consciously and unconsciously absorb its messages everyday.
Read up on these issues
#MeToo Clashes with ‘Bro Culture’ at Ad Agencies
By Tiffany Hsu, New York Times
Stories of Being Black in Advertising: 1969-2020
By Katie Deighton, The Drum
Sexism In Advertising: ‘They Talk About Diversity But They Don’t Want Change’
By Rachel Cooke, The Guardian
Why The Picture Of Diversity On Madison Avenue Is So Murky
By Nathalie Tadena, The Wall Street Journal
We Are The 0.1%: Why The Ad World Needs More Female Founders
By Mira Kaddoura, AdAge
Branding Blackness by Design
By Marshall Shorts, TEDx Talk
Why The Ad Industry’s Diversity Strategy Needs A New Brief
By Rochelle Newman-Carrasco, AdAge
‘I Left And I Shut Up’: Why Women In Advertising Won’t Speak Publicly About Harassment
By Shareen Pathak, Digiday
Women In Advertising Reveal Rampant Sexism And Macho Culture
By Rob Davies, The Guardian