I have a bad habit of letting magazines pile up in my inbox, but yesterday the web connection went down and I didn't know what to with myself, so I started reading some back issues. I came across a great essay/article in Print's March/April 2007 issue by Virginia Postrel pondering the fear that some designers feel when faced with the proliferation of amateur work on the web and in print.

Her best argument about why designers shouldn't worry, likening writing to design, makes a lot of sense to me:

After all, the First Amendment promises that anyone can express him- or herself in writing, yet writers don’t live in fear that people are issuing unlicensed prose. Everyone (at least in theory) learns to read and write in school, which is to the benefit of daily communication, and not the detriment of professional writers. Neither my self-image nor my pro-fessional standing is threatened if you write a letter or a memo or a poem celebrating someone’s birthday, or, for that matter, publish an article or create a blog. Literacy doesn’t quench the demand for skillful writing—it enhances it.

In the same way, design literacy will only increase the demand for great design. Don't fear the do-it-yourselfer, just think about designing more tools for him to use to express himself, beautifully.

Posted by Megan