A DEDICATION TO THE TRAILBLAZERS, THE AMAZING WOMEN IN ARCHITECTURE
For a long time I have been pondering on the idea of starting a business from scratch. A business that would at the same time, bring me joy and make this world a better place. I used to think it would be having my own studio, being a boss babe and designing only things I really wanted. The more I think about it, the harder it is to imagine.
WHY BOTHER?
Let me be clear, I love, really LOVE architecture. But it takes so much out of you that you stop enjoying it and start to wonder why even bother. The real world is brutal and the ones who get stepped on the most are architects, especially women architects.
ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL
I just recently finished architecture school and let me tell you, it is NO JOKE. You get put through a lot. The span of information and details you are expected to know is overwhelming. From Roman architecture to the turn radius of a fire truck, we were bombarded with so much.
Now that I am on the other side, I can honestly say that even though it was consistently difficult, it was at the same time awesome. You get to know a whole other world and meet people who don’t look at you as a weirdo if you would rather look at the museum than the pictures inside of it. You become a part of a different culture and it feels good. Also there is this air of competitiveness keeping you on your toes, motivating you and you like it because, if you are somewhat like me, you want to prove to everyone you are the best.
After a while though you start to get tired. This is where the true beauty of architecture school comes in. In all off this madness, you find people who are willing to help you. Who motivate you by believing in you, not making you feel lesser. Those are the people that are going to be in your life for good. Your architecture family.
REALITY HIT HARD
So after six years of this love-hate relationship I finally graduated and started looking for a job. Most of the studios I e-mailed were led by, you guessed it, a man. At the time I didn’t think much of it. I finished school in July and started working in September. After working now for about two years I can honestly say that my frustration has reached its boiling point.
Why is it that there are so much more female architecture students and architects, but people only know about Zaha Hadid?
How many women have been awarded the Pritzker Prize? The award has been given out since 1979, yet only 6 women have received it: Anne Lacaton (2021. with Jean-Philippe Vassal), Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara (2020.), Carme Pigem (2017. with Rafael Aranda and Ramon Vilalta), Kazuyo Sejima (2010. with Ryue Nishizawa) and Zaha Hadid (2004.).
I started to realize that even though we learned so much in school, the focus was always on men, no matter the topic.
The only time of year women are in focus is Women’s Day. Why do we need a special day to be mentioned when women are amazing all year round?
OUR NEXT STEPS, PROMOTING AMAZING WOMEN
Although the number of female architects has been rising, the fact is that this is still a male-dominant industry.
I find it sad that in 2021. we are still talking about this problem. By pointing a finger at it, hopefully we can make it become a problem of the past. My goal is to make this platform an online architecture family. A place where we can celebrate our achievements and promote one another.
Together, we can expose amazing women and try to further educate and inspire. I get a great sense of pride and motivation when seeing headlines featuring successful business women and I hope you will to.
Let us all strive for greatness!
