gatekeeping is the activity of controlling, and usually limiting, general access to something. gatekeeping in design goes back to the idea that designers think they know best and anyone without the same level of education or equiptment can't even attempt to design something good. i think this stems from the fact that design has become so democratized with things like fiverr and canva that “professional” designers are looking for anything they can grab onto to keep themselves on a “higher level” than everyone else. so perpetuating the idea that anything behind a paywall makes it better. like adobe being the industry standard, or needing to have a degree in design, or having to struggle through unpaid internships* the paywall there is that you are financially sound enough to be able to take an unpaid job. in a world where everyone is a designer, the industry keeps moving the goalpost to keep the pool of “good” designers small.

*the paywall there is that you are financially sound enough to be able to take an unpaid job

When coming up with the concept for my puzzle I first had to decide which section of my manifesto it best related to. The puzzle I wanted to make was inspired by a puzzle from the magic puzzle company where there is a secret puzzle after you finish the first puzzle. With that element, I thought “gatekeeping” would be the perfect section to choose.

I then started to plan how I could integrate the idea of gatekeeping with a puzzle. I was thinking about how elitists often attribute their success to just putting their blood sweat and tears into something, meaning anyone can do it if they work hard enough. From there I had the idea to lock a part of the puzzle in a box that could only be opened with someone's blood. Blood sacrifices are also very cult-y, and when an institution like design has so many hoops to jump through, rules and paywalls, it feels a little cult-y.