?There are no more excuses for how our work and voices aren?t represented,? says founder Malene Barnett Malene Barnett?s career has changed a lot since she graduated from design school 20 years ago: She?s masterminded dozens of interiors around the world, developed products, and nurtured her fine-arts work in a number of mediums.
But one thing hasn?t changed: When she opens a magazine, she doesn?t see black people?or the robust body of work she knows black designers produce.

Courtesy Black Artists + Designers Guild
Artist and designer Malene Barnett founded the collective.

?I shouldn?t have to open a magazine and say, ?Oh, they featured another black designer.? It shouldn?t be a surprise anymore,? Barnett tells Curbed. ?I?m doing the homework the media should have done. I?m not going to wait for them to do it. There are no more excuses for how our work and voices aren?t represented. Let?s talk about how to move forward and create more opportunities.? Instead of staying frustrated, Barnett decided to take action and establish the Black Artists + Designers Guild, a collective that aims to become the go-to resource for people interested in hiring black creatives and, more importantly, publishing and spreading awareness of their work.
The glaring lack of diversity and inclusion in creative industries is a longstanding problem. Improving representation will take a number of interventions?changing education, improving pay equity, reorienting o...