Code Like A Girl Logo, Part 1: Inspiration

Code Like A Girl is an organization that introduces girls to different STEM fields, advocates for women in tech, and connects like-minded individuals who are involved in the industry. For the last month or two Dinah Davis and I have been collaborating to create a logo for the organization. The following blog entry is the first of a four part series taking a close look at the process of creating the Code Like a Girl logo.

Part 1: Inspiration

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​Coding can make you feel like a rockstar. The imagery for the Code Like A Girl logo strives to capture that sensation. Here’s what inspired it.

​I've always had this thing where I considered myself "bad at math". Coding and computer science were caught up in my concept of "math" or at least heavily involved "math", therefore I believed I must be horrible at computer science too.

However, I've also been fascinated by technology for what seems like forever. My dad bought a Commodore 64 for the family home and I remember him showing my brother and I how to use it. In university I incorporated technology into most of my third and fourth year art pieces. I romanticized the notion of code as a medium for my art for years. So I thought it was pertinent to see if I could actually do it. That’s when I decided to take my first introductory computer class at UW. I knew the basics of HTML and CSS, but JavaScript still unsettled me and I was hoping that by completing the class I wouldn't panic if I started reading through a JavaScript object.

I spent countless nights that semester staying up until the wee hours of the morning working on my assignment problems. On the first question of a tough assignment I remember spending five hours and wanting to give up. However, something astounding happened after I had made the umpteenth pass through the body of the function and made a couple of changes. My code finally returned the output I had been trying to wrangle from it for those five aggravating hours! Staring at the screen in disbelief, I laughed and felt like pumping my fist in the air. That feeling is what got me through the rest of the semester.

Dinah and I believe that sense of elation is the essence of the Code Like A Girl icon. The girl throwing up her hands in victory is the figurative embodiment of the everywoman who feels fierce satisfaction when she solves the answer to her first problem and the nth problem after it.