The gradually increasing presence of a diverse range of practitioners across the architectural profession has provided a stronger platform for women to showcase their work, leadership, and innovation. In remembering the past, pioneering female architects such as Denise Scott Brown and Norma Merrick Sklarek have paved the way for women like Kazuyo Sejima, Dame Zaha Hadid, and Jeanne Gang to push the boundaries of representation in the field. Further, architecture's new class of female architects are learning from their predecessors and making moves for what architecture will become in 2019. With discussions of the #MeToo movement, equitable labor practices, and diversity weighing heavily on the field, the profession still has a long way to go. 

With 2018 marking notable moments for women, this year's ensemble of female architects brings something new and distinct to the table. Leaders like Tiffany Brown of 400 Forward are paving the way for inclusion and representation in black communities. Sisters Anda and Jenny French of French 2D use academic discourse through  community engagement to create discussions around the built environment. And Alda Ly of Alda Ly Architecture and Design is showing female architects the power of design and business acumen through mentorship. 

Working across a wide range of sectors, from academia and business, to public interest design and digital technology, architecture's new wave of female powerhouses are leading the way for architecture's future. In celebrating International Women's Day, Archinect highlights 13 women who have learned from the past and remain relentless in the present, progressing the profession and keeping things relevant. 

Ann Lui of Future Firm
Ann Lui does it all: she is one-half of the Chicago-based Future Firm; an assistant professor at the School of Art Institute of Chicago; and recently served as co-curator of the US Pavilion at the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale. Interested in the role of architecture as an infrastructure for discourse, she is constantly pushing the field to create more inclusive and equitable environments. Her work, alongside partner Craig Reschke, spans disciplines, fusing art, architecture, community engagement practices, and technological innovation in order to advocate for a better-built environment. "In teaching, curating, practice, I’m always trying to learn how to design space for the unexpected things I haven’t designed to, in fact, occur."

Tiffany Brown of 400 Forward and Urban Arts Collective
Tiffany Brown used her Detroit upbringing and passion for inclusivity to provide a path for the youth and women of color. As the founder of 400 Forward and co-founder of the Urban Arts Collective Brown strived to create spaces for underserved and underrepresented children. Growing up Brown used her interests in the arts to indirectly lead her to architecture. Realizing that architecture was missing people of color and connectivity with individuals living in underserved areas Brown was motivated to create opportunities for those around her. “It became a passion of mine to be the face I was looking for growing up. So I came up with an initiative where I would do my part in seeking out next 400 women architects with an underlying focus on African American girls.”

Anda and Jenny French of French 2D
Anda and Jenny French of French 2D use their passions in graphic design, academia, and architectural discourse to produce thought-provoking work that allows for architecture to be shared with the public. As a smaller design firm, the Boston-based duo champion the importance of autonomy and prototyping. Pushing the boundaries as designers and educators, both women approach practice and academia by creating opportunities for people to be candid and critical.  Several of their projects spark discourse by allowing others to question "What is it?" and "Why is it?" According to Anda and Jenny, “The only way to move forward is to redesign the culture that made these transgressions possible, which is the same culture that, despite evidence to the contrary, has counted women out of it. We hope we are moving to a culture in school and in practice that counts and listens to women, not just when in crisis, but listens to women, full stop.”

Sue Mobley of Colloqate Design
Sue Mobley is the Director of Advocacy for Colloqate Design, a multi-disciplinary, non-profit practice that she co-founded with architect Bryan Lee Jr. in 2017. The New Orleans practice is fiercely dedicated to expanding community access to, advocating for, and designing spaces of racial, social, and cultural equity. Mobley has spoken extensively on design justice on podcasts and has sat on panels at the Center for Planning Excellence Smart Growth Summit, the AIGA Design Conference, and more. And she has presented at the Fannie Mae Headquarters on affordable housing policy. She is also the Public Programs Manager at the Tulane School of Architecture's Small Center for Collaborative Design and curated its “Sites of Resistance” exhibition.

Stella Lee of Bureau V
A voice for innovation and resilience, Stella Lee leads the New York-based firm, Bureau V. Her former experience at prominent firms has provided her with high profiled design expertise as well as unfortunate events that propelled her to address a grave issue within the architecture community. An advocate for female architects, especially those who have experienced forms of sexual harassment, Lee has used her to voice to express issues that continuously go unattended within the profession. Her 2018 op-ed piece in the New York Times created a platform for the discussion of countless stories from women within the architecture community who have undergone such experiences. As an example of personal resilience, Lee continues to use her experiences as catalysts for progression in design and practice. “I have often thought that this would be my contribution to the profession and the future of women within it: the creation of my own workspace, in which diversity and respect are supported — to lead by example.”

Rozana Montiel of Rozana Montiel Estudio de Arquitectura
Rozana Montiel and her Mexico-based practice focus on architectural design and research, perceptive reconfigurations of space, and the public domain — from urban rehabilitation projects in sensitive areas around Mexico to low-cost interventions that engage local communities. She continues to gain recognition in the industry, with some of her recent accolades including: the 2018 MCHAP.emerge award for “Common Unity”, the 2017 Moira Gemmill Prize, and a 2016 Emerging Voices Award from The Architectural League of New York. “All architecture is political [...] Everyday decisions build the city. We can read in daily spaces the political priorities of our society,” Montiel previously said in the Architectural Review.

Alda Ly of Alda Ly Architecture and Design
With over a decade of experience working in prominent architecture firms and co-founding MASS Design Group, Alda Ly established her own practice in 2017. She has led projects that range from high-end fashion showrooms and retail stores to designing the East Coast and California locations for her long-time collaborator, The Wing, a growing network of co-working and community spaces for women across the U.S. Ly also co-founded Designers Assembly, which empowers young design professionals to sharpen their entrepreneurial and business skills needed in the architecture industry.

Catherine Johnson and Rebecca Rudolph of Design, Bitches
Since its founding in 2010, Design, Bitches has been transforming the urban fabric of Los Angeles. Run by Catherine Johnson and Rebecca Rudolph, the duo fuse SoCal aesthetics with a healthy dose of badassery in order to create inventive spaces that are redefining the city’s food and dining scene. Projects such as their conversion of a Masonic Temple into an hip eventscape, their Bauhaus-inspired ice cream parlor, and their design for the adorable Venice bakery Superba have helped put the duo on the map, and garnered them numerous awards.

Jennifer Newsom of Dream the Combine
An architect and installation artist, Jennifer Newsom works alongside her husband Tom Carruthers to run the Minneapolis-based practice Dream the Combine. Last year, the duo won the highly prestigious Young Architects Program put on by MoMA’s PS1. Focusing mainly on public art installations that activate overlooked urban spaces, the Yale alumni have been helping to build up the strong design community of the Twin Cities, where Newsom also works as an instructor at the University of Minnesota. On the power of the built environment, Newsom said in a previous interview with Archinect that “one of the great abilities of architecture is its ability to be generous–to receive and to welcome.”

Xu Tian of DnA Design and Architecture
Xu Tian is a Beijing based architect and founder of DnA Design and Architecture. Much of her work emphasizes "architectural acupuncture", especially in China's rural county. Much of her projects focus on buildings that work within China’s landscape. With a mix of her Eastern-Western architectural education, she uses these design differences to rethink design strategies for rural developments. Her work is a culmination of buildings that highlight the communities and their needs within the area. Most of her work exemplifies social impact and cultural connectivity. “What makes a lot of Chinese architects let go of their dream is they know that their building probably won't be realized in the way you like," she says. "But my dream is still alive.”

Maria Paz of Rizoma Arquitetura
With an inspiring amount of determination, architect and educator Maria Paz De Moura Castro has learned how to deal with the challenges of being a young, female architect — from starting her career during her college years, to co-running Rizoma Arquitetura, to pursuing an architecture education and teaching. In an interview on Madame Architect, Maria urges aspiring designers to never stop learning, try different things, and to not settle into one's comfort zone — all of which she continues to do herself.

Pascale Sablan of Beyond the Built Environment
Over the years, NYC-born architect Pascale Sablan has become an unmistakable voice in the field advocating for women architects and architects of color. The 315th living black female to receive licensure in the US, she received the 2018 AIA Young Architects Award for her significant contributions to the field and exceptional leadership in moving the profession forward. She has served as president of the New York Coalition of Black Architects; has developed programs with NOMA to educate and empower people of color in the field; and is introducing elementary school students in New York to architecture through Project Pipeline. Sablan is currently the Northeast Regional Vice President and Historian of NOMA and AIA New York Board of Director. She currently works for S9 Architecture as a senior associate, with prior experience at FXFOWLE Architects.