Archinect - News

HKS architect Meggie Meidlinger stars for USA women's baseball team

2024-08-30T08:30:00-04:00

[Meggie] Meidlinger has racked up accolades on the pitching mound, including a gold medal as a closer for Team USA. While women’s baseball isn’t a sport in the Olympic Games, she and her teammates added a silver medal to that collection Aug. 3 at the Women’s Baseball World Cup. When she’s not on the field, the 36-year-old helps design sports facilities as a project architect with Atlanta-based HKS.

The Virginia Tech graduate Meidlinger hasn't given up an earned run in two years as the closer for Team USA. Number 13 in your program and Number One in the hearts of her fellow HKS Atlanta office staffers says she wants to be a role model for girls participating in youth sports and the architectural profession. She and her baseball teammates also travel regularly to Uganda to promote the sport to women there as ambassadors.

Featured architecture job openings at 20 women-led firms across the country

2024-03-08T08:06:00-05:00

This week's edition of our curated jobs roundup features an assemblage of architecture and design career opportunities being offered by 20 women-led firms in Los Angeles, New York City/Brooklyn, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.

To see and keep up with the range of roles at firms run by or founded/owned by women, use our Diverse Ownership filters or this direct link. And, make sure to visit Archinect Jobs for the complete list of positions.

To study up on specific job titles from the architectural profession, consult Archinect's Guide to Job Titles series. Also, follow our Archinect Tips series to improve your portfolio, resume, interviewing skills, and increase your overall chances of getting that next job.

Bestor Architecture seeks an Intermediate Designer in Los Angeles
"Bestor Architecture’s Intermediate Designer is part of a collaborative team of architects and designers. This person will provide expertise and design leadership in all phases of project development – schematic ...

Evelyn Lee is named 2025 AIA President

2023-06-09T15:47:00-04:00

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has formally announced AIA San Francisco and AIA California chapter member Evelyn Lee as its 2024 First VP President-Elect and 2025 President.

Lee is currently the Global Head of Workspace Strategy and Innovation at Slack in San Francisco and is also a member of the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA). She also served as the AIA National Treasurer from 2020 to 2021 and comes to the position with extensive experience within the organization, including a stint as the Past Chair of the Young Architect's Forum and National Associates Committee.

Lee has also contributed to the profession as a design strategist and writer, discussing with Archinect in a 2018 featured interview that she sees a need for manifold changes throughout the profession for architecture to maintain its relevance in society more broadly.

"Architects need to take hold of our identities as multi-faceted problem solvers, conveners, and human-centered design th...

Women-led project team breaks ground on the Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance

2023-04-03T14:47:00-04:00

Seattle welcomes a new basketball performance center that won't just be a "world-class facility" but a space to support, foster, and train female professional athletes. Four-time WNBA champions, the Seattle Storm, celebrated an important milestone as their 50,000-square-foot Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance broke ground on Monday, March 27.

While it's said to "be the first facility of its kind in the United States," what makes this endeavor even more notable is that its project team is 85% female-led, across five firms and practices specializing in architecture, landscape architecture, construction, and real estate.

Female design and engineering team photographed at Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance's groundbreaking. Image courtesy of ZGF Architects/Shive-Hattery Architects

Participating design team ZGF Architects shared: "The goal was to build a world-class facility for world-class female athletes — with women-led teams who are experts in their field."...

Featured architecture, interiors, and landscape job openings at female-led firms in Chicago and the Midwest

2023-03-23T15:09:00-04:00

Following our recent curated employment highlights that focused specifically on current architectural job opportunities at women-led firms in New York City, Texas, Arizona, and California, we are setting our sights this week on Chicago and Missouri.

From Architectural Designers to Interiors Architects and Landscape Architects, take a look at these currently-available roles at design practices owned or run by women, and visit Archinect Jobs for the complete list of positions. To view only jobs at female-led firms, use our Diverse Ownership filters or this direct link.

Studio Gang seeks an Interiors Architect and Licensed Interior Designer in Chicago
"Studio Gang is actively seeking an Interiors Architect to collabor...

Featured architecture projects from female-led firms in the American Northeast

2023-03-23T13:23:00-04:00

In celebration of Women's History Month, we continue to highlight built work by female architects and female-led design practices.

After looking at some standout projects in the American West, New York, and globally in recent weeks, we head to the Northeast of the U.S. to showcase 11 firms that have posted projects to their Archinect Firm Profile.

Feeling inspired? Be sure to check out the job opportunities at female-lead firms in Archinect Jobs.

In the Dunes by Woodhull
The firm is led by directors Teresa Telander and Amy Kronenthal (CFO), along with founding principal Caleb Johnson and fellow directors in Portland, ME.

In the Dunes. Image courtesy of Woodhull. Learn more about the project here.

National Presbyterian Church - Addition and Renovation by Beyer Blinder Belle

The firm is led by partners Jil, S. Cavanaugh, Margaret Kittinger, and Elizabeth Leber (managing partner), principals Rayna Huber Erlich, Jennie Gwin, Elizabeth Kim, Carmen Menocal, and Cassie Walker, along with f...

Featured architecture projects from female-led firms based in New York

2023-03-17T11:58:00-04:00

Continuing with our project highlights featuring built work by female-led architecture and design practices, we head East to highlight nine firms that have posted projects to their Archinect Firm Profile.

From residential homes, campus extensions, adaptive reuse projects, and larger-than-life public works explore projects from female-led or owned practices below. Feeling inspired? Be sure to check out the job opportunities at female-lead firms in Archinect Jobs.

Princeton School of Architecture Addition by Architecture Research Office
This firm is led by Kim Yao alongside Stephen Cassell and Adam Yarinsky in New York, NY

Princeton School of Architecture Addition by Architecture Research Office. Learn more about the project here.

A Series of Whirlpool Field Manoeuvres for Pier 27 by Alice Aycock (AYC, Ltd.)
The practice is led by Alice Aycock in New York, NY

A Series of Whirlpool Field Manoeuvres for Pier 27 by Alice Aycock (AYC, Ltd.) Learn more about the project here.

Hide-and-Seek Ap...

Female-led architecture firms currently hiring in Texas and Arizona

2023-03-16T11:15:00-04:00

Working in big cities like Los Angeles or New York may be ideal for some, but it's easy to overlook exciting job opportunities in large cities with a growing metropolitan area.

If you're looking for a change of scenery, explore four firms run by women, founded/owned, or partnered by women currently hiring on Archinect Jobs. Be sure to check out our previous job highlights, where we featured job opportunities in California and New York City-based firms.

Ibarra Rosano Design Architects seeks an Intermediate Designer
Location: Tucson, AZ

Details: The ideal candidate "should have 3 to 5+ years of experience as a designer, project leader or similar position at an architecture firm working directly with clients and consultants, have technical construction understanding with the ability to manage architecture detailing, and have professional experience moving a project from predesign and concept through contract administration, with experience in coordinating consultants’ work and basic, ...

Job openings at 11 female-led architecture firms in California

2023-03-10T13:52:00-05:00

The gap between men and women in the architecture profession is being addressed daily. Women have made tremendous moves in the field, and several firms have pushed beyond the "boys club" of architecture, not only with an increase in female architects but with visible female leadership.

Continuing last week's employment focus on highlighting female-led and owned firms in New York City, we head west to and feature 11 California-based firms with open positions listed on the Archinect Job Board.

Silvertop House, originally designed by John Lautner and restored by Bestor Architects. Photo: Iwan Baan.

Bestor Architecture seeks a Job Captain
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Details: "Bestor Architecture’s Job Captain is part of a collaborative team of architects and designers. This person will provide expertise in all phases of project development—schematic design through construction administration. We are looking for an experienced collaborator to join us on our first ground-up institutional pro...

Featured architecture projects from female-led international firms

2023-03-08T15:40:00-05:00

As we celebrate Women's History Month, we continue our focus on celebrating the built works of female architects and female-led architecture firms. Last week, we highlighted projects from architecture firms in the American West that have been posted to their firm profiles. Today, on International Women's Day, we share some projects across the globe including China, Portugal, Australia, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Nigeria, Cyprus, and Georgia.

Feeling inspired? Be sure to check out the job opportunities at female-lead firms in Archinect Jobs.

Magic Bar by GB SPACE
This firm is led by Wenyu Gao and Yang Bai in Beijing, China.

Magic Bar by GB Space. Image © Ning Wang/Courtesy of GP Space. Learn more about the project here.

Heróis de África House by CREA - Arquitetos
The studio's team consists of Tânia Fernandes, Teresa Osório, and Rita Correia, along with André Camelo, Bruno Soares, and António Ataíde in Oporto, Portugal.

Heróis de África House by CREA - Arquitetos. Image courtesy o...

20 featured architecture job opportunities at women-led firms in New York City

2023-03-03T13:50:00-05:00

Featured in this week's curated employment highlight are architectural job opportunities at New York City-based firms wholly run by women, or founded/owned or partnered by women.

From Interns to Intermediate Designers to Project Architects, check out these 20+ openings below and visit Archinect Jobs for the complete list of available positions. To view only jobs at female-led firms, use our Diverse Ownership filters or this direct link.

Selldorf Architects seeks a Project Manager and Interior Designer
"Selldorf Architects is an international architecture and interior design firm based in Union Square. [...] This is a senior professional architect responsible to deliver projects on time and on budget while maintaining design excellence and maximizing profitability and efficiency. Working closely with the Principal and Partners to develop the design, they lead and direct the work of the project team on a day-to-day basis through all phases."

Valerie Schweitzer Architects seeks a Proj...

Featured architecture projects from female-led firms based in the American West

2023-03-01T15:20:00-05:00

As we enter Women's History Month today we begin to highlight some of the work produced by female-led firms, to complement our existing stories and profiles.

Pioneering women in the profession continue to make their mark and shift our industry into a more inclusive direction. When you look at a realized design project, however, it's not always clear who the team of leaders and designers are behind that work. To kick off a celebration of women, Archinect launches a new series featuring built projects led by female-owned and operated firms.

For our first installment, we've started with 13 architecture firms based in the American West that have posted projects to their Archinect Firm Profile. Feeling inspired? Check out the job opportunities at female-lead firms in Archinect Jobs.

B+B House by Design, Bitches
The firm is led by Catherine Johnson and Rebecca Rudolph in Los Angeles, CA

B+B House. Image © Yoshihiro Makino. Learn more about the project here.

Armstrong Ave Residence by Robi...

Architecture student Maya Matabwa named University of Illinois Chicago's Hartshorne and Plunkard Fellow

2023-02-22T14:42:00-05:00

Maya Matabwa, a first-year M.Arch student from the University of Illinois Chicago's College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts, is the recipient of the second Hartshorn and Plunkard Fellowship.

The program officially launched in 2022 by awarding its first fellow, M.Arch student Martina Smith, and is named and funded in honor of UIC alumni Ray Hartshorne and Jim Plunkard of Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture (HPA). To increase the opportunities for architecture students from traditionally underrepresented communities, the fellowship provides students with financial support for up to three years, academic and professional mentoring, and a paid internship at HPA.

Matabwa, who was born in Malawi, shared with UIC Today that receiving the award is "still sinking in."

Across academic institutions and firms, initiatives to create stronger pipelines, mentorship, and funding for students of marginalized communities have increased. "Being here as a young, Black, Malawian woman is an honor, ...

Phyllis Lambert and Kazuyo Sejima win 2023 Jane Drew and Ada Louise Huxtable Prizes

2023-01-30T13:40:00-05:00

Influential Canadian architect Phyllis Lambert and SANAA co-founder Kazuyo Sejima have been named as this year's respective winners of the Jane Drew and Ada Louise Huxtable prizes by the UK-based publications Architects’ Journal and The Architectural Review as part of the annual W Awards program, now in its 11th year.

Lambert was awarded the Ada Louise Huxtable Prize for her influence on the culture of architecture. Her early work with Mies van der Rohe on New York’s Seagram Building has been well documented, along with the influence spread throughout her native country after founding the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA) in Montreal in 1979. Her influence is still widely felt today in both countries. As AR’s Deputy Editor Eleanor Beaumont said, Lambert encourages us to “always be curious.”

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Phyllis Lambert with the model for the Seagram Building New York, 1955. Photo © Fonds Phyllis Lambert.

Sejima, the 2010 winner of the Pritzker Prize along with S...

Delhi-based architect Swati Janu awarded the 2022 Moira Gemmil Prize for Emerging Architecture

2022-05-03T14:14:00-04:00

The W Awards, formerly known as the Women in Architecture awards, announce this year's Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture winner. The awards program was created to recognize the work and achievements of female and non-binary designers in professional practice under the age of 45.

Last year's prize was awarded to six female architects part of the architecture practice Lacol. This year's Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture goes to architect Swati Janu.

Social Design Collaborative's ModSkool in Delhi, a modular, low-cost school designed to help communities quickly dismantle the structure as a means to protect it from demolitions. The Modskool was awarded the Beazley Design of the Year 2020 in Architecture. Learn more about the project here. Image courtesy of the Architectural Review.

The Delhi-based architect, writer, and community artist is the founder of Social Design Collaborative. Her practice focuses on integrating architectural activism and community engagemen...

Women at the helm: 12 female-led and owned firms currently hiring on Archinect Jobs

2022-03-25T12:46:00-04:00

The rise of female leadership within firms continues to grow over the years. As women of the AEC industry continue to break through outdated ideologies of what firm leadership looks like, the team at Archinect continues to showcase the skills and expertise of female architects throughout our editorial. Today we highlight current job opportunities at women-led or owned firms for our latest curated jobs roundup. From entry-level positions to project architects, below is a list of 14 jobs and two internship opportunities currently on the Archinect Job Board.

If you're looking for a new position as we enter the second quarter of 2022 and want to explore employment options from firm leaders with specializations in historic preservation, residential, and mixed-use projects, to name a few, check out these employment opportunities below.

*Are you a female-led practice with open job positions or internships? Reach out to us at connect@archinect.com or post a job on Archinect's Job board to h...

Dabbagh Architects’ first mosque project gives an enlightening new spiritual resource to Dubai's Al Quoz district

2021-12-21T17:04:00-05:00

A bright new spiritual center is finally open in Al Quoz, the industrial heart of Dubai.

Dabbagh Architects is behind one of the first mosques in the Emirates ever designed by a female architect.

Photo: Gerry O’Leary

A masterwork of materiality and form, the newly-completed mosque evokes a sense of inner calm to its worshippers, offering a spiritual break from the materialism of the outside world as promoted in the Quran.

Sumaya Dabbagh is one of only a handful of Saudi women architects and is considered a leader in the Gulf region for her designs, which “place an emphasis on the intangible in architecture; seeking to create meaning and a sense of the poetic in order to form a connection with each building’s user.”

Photo: Gerry O’Leary

“At the end of each project, my hope is that the building will evoke the feelings and emotions that were envisioned at the outset,” the architect said in a statement. “There is a defining, magical moment when the building is born and claims a life of...

Lisa Iwamoto has been appointed as the new Chair of Architecture at UC Berkeley's CED

2021-12-14T17:25:00-05:00

UC Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design (CED) has named a successor to its Architecture Chair in its effort to fill a leadership void created after popular former dean Vishaan Chakrabarti announced his unexpected departure in early September.

Current Professor of Architecture Lisa Iwamoto was appointed Chair of the department effective December 1st by the CED’s acting Dean Renee Chow.

Iwamoto has been on the faculty at Berkeley for the past two decades and is also a founding partner of the San Francisco-based practice IwamotoScott Architecture, which has won multiple national awards since its founding in 2002.

“I am pleased to appoint Lisa as the next chair of the department. She has dedicated her career to balancing practice with academia and enters the position with a well-rounded approach to architectural education that can meet the contemporary environmental challenges and opportunities we face,” Chow said in a statement.

Iwamoto is a graduate of the Harvard GSD and the U...

RIDING THE VORTEX is named as 2022 recipient of the Whitney M. Young Jr. Award

2021-12-10T19:20:00-05:00

RIDING THE VORTEX has today been announced as the 2022 recipient of the AIA’s Whitney M. Young Jr. Award honoring the group’s commitment to challenging social issues.

The 50th edition of the award went to the 14-year-old breakout group that was formed after the 2007 AIA conference in San Antonio. Since then, VORTEX has gone on to establish itself as a torchbearer for the inclusion of Black women in all aspects of the industry, taking Mr. Young’s observations on the profession from the 1968 AIA conference as their charge.

A group photo after the RIDING THE VORTEX session at the 2008 AIA National Conference. Photo: Steven Lewis, image courtesy RIDING THE VORTEX.

“Everyone involved in VORTEX’s programming, whether they are a collaborator, panelist, or audience member, has emerged from the experience with a unique blend of intellect, creativity, and aspiration that empowers them to move confidently through the profession,” the AIA citation read. “Many often find support through the conne...

The University of Kansas names Hui Cai as next chair of the Department of Architecture

2021-08-25T12:06:00-04:00

The University of Kansas School of Architecture and Design has named Dr. Hui Cai as the next chair of the Department of Architecture.

Cai has been at the University of Kansas since 2014 working as an associate professor of architecture and associate director of the KU Institute of Health + Wellness Design. With a focus on cross-cultural studies on healthcare design, she has helped build the institute into a community and industry research asset. The institute has worked with companies and communities to improve rural health care access, develop innovative health care facilities, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cai received her doctorate in evidence-based design from the Georgia Institute of Technology after earning a Bachelor’s and Master’s in architecture at Southeast University in Jiangsu, China and the National University of Singapore, respectively. This time was also spent practicing architecture in the region. In 2011, she was awarded the International Academy Award in ...

The 2021 Isamu Noguchi Award goes to artist Shio Kusaka and architect Toshiko Mori

2021-08-24T15:14:00-04:00

Each year, the Isamu Noguchi Award honors and recognizes the work of individuals who "embody global consciousness, design innovation, and emphasis on cultural exchanges between Eastern and Western cultures." This year's 2021 award will be presented to artist Shio Kusaka and architect Toshiko Mori.

Both women, born in Japan and practicing in the United States, have had illustrious careers where their work and contribution to art, design, and architecture positions them as leaders in their respective fields.

Artist Shio Kusaka

Ceramic work by Shio Kusaka. Image courtesy of Shio Kusaka (via @kusakashio)

A row of Shio Kusaka's ceramic animals on top of the built-in bookcase at the Richard Neutra-designed VDL House in Los Angeles. Image courtesy of Shio Kusaka (@kusakashio)

Born in Morioka, Japan, Kusaka received her BFA from the University of Washington, Seattle, and lives and works in Los Angeles. Her work focuses on innovative and gracefully playful approaches to the ceramic medium. ...

'Her architecture is elegant, ecological and always intriguing' — Architect Anupama Kundoo wins 2021 RIBA Charles Jencks Award

2021-08-17T16:53:00-04:00

The RIBA Charles Jencks Award has been given to architects and firms who have made "a major contribution to both the theory and practice of architecture." This prestigious award has been presented to Débora Mesa and Antón García-Abril of Ensamble Studio (2019), Herzog & de Meuron (2015), and Eric Owen Moss (2011) to name a few.

The notable shortlist of nominated architects includes MASS Design Group, Emilio Ambasz, Alexander Brodsky, Nigel Coates, Beatriz Colomina, Francis Kéré, Peter Salter, Marina Tabassum, and Eyal Weizman.

This year's RIBA Charles Jencks Award is presented to Indian architect and researcher Anupama Kundoo. Her winning the award is a great reflection of influential architectural practices and academic work in South Asia.

Trained in Mumbai, Kundoo's focus on housing initiatives, material research, sustainability, and community-driven design has positioned her as an advocate for socially responsible architectur...

The W Awards announces the Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture winners

2021-03-10T17:56:00-05:00

The Moira Gemmill Prize for Emerging Architecture recognizes designers under the age of 45 for their achievement in professional practice. Last year's prize was awarded to Francesca Torzo of Francesca Torzo Architetto. Architect Mariam Kamara of Atelier Masomi was recognized and highly commended for the prize.

This year's prizes have been awarded to six female architects who are part of the architecture practice, Lacol. Members Ariadna Artigas, Anna Clemente, Eulàlia Daví, Cristina Gamboa, Laura Lluch, and Núria Vila were praised by this year's jury for their housing projects La Borda, Coòpolis, and co-operative complex La Comunal.

The judges for this year's prize share: "They expand beyond the horizons of forms and materials, they take architecture out of the traditional client-user commissioning relationship by politicizing it – and it is remarkably effective. This alternative model of practice creates a collaborat...

She exemplified 'the perseverance of the architect,' Lina Bo Bardi awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement

2021-03-10T16:30:00-05:00

The late Lina Bo Bardi is a prolific architect, designer, editor, and curator. Even after her passing, her work continues to be an example for others to take note of. Her legacy reminds the industry that at the center of design is bringing communities together. Hashim Sarkis, 2021 curator of the 17th Biennale Architettura, stated, "it is her powerful buildings that stand out in their design and in the way that they bring architecture, nature, living, and community together. In her hands, architecture becomes truly a convening social art."

Familiar with her impactful career spanning decades of iconic work, it was no surprise that the famed multi-talented architect had been awarded the Special Gold Lion for Lifetime Achievement. Sarkis, who recommended her for the award, shared, "if there is one architect who embodies most fittingly the theme of the Biennale Architettura 2021, it is Lina Bo Bardi. Her career as a designer, editor, curator, and activist reminds us of the role of the a...

The 2021 W Awards announces the MJ Long Prize Winner

2021-03-09T13:51:00-05:00

In honor of American architect, writer, and lecturer MJ Long, the MJ Long Prize is awarded to a UK-based female architect that has excelled in practice. Now in its second year, the award's inaugural recipient went to Tracy Meller of Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners. This year, the W Awards announces Alice Brownfield as the 2021 winner. Brownfield is the associate director of Peter Barber Architects and was recognized for her work on the London infill housing project, Kiln Place.

According to Brownfield, the project's success was due to the architects' collaboration with the residents. "What we really need is a central government-funded mass council housing program," says Brownfield. "At Peter Barber Architects, we believe that architecture has the potential for social action."

The Judges for this year's prize discuss Bronwfield's work and her success as a practitioner. "Despite the project’s high degree of complexity, there is a real sense she goes above and beyond what might be req...

Writing Women Into History: A Curated Reading List Tackles the 'Imbalance' of Female Voices Within Architecture

2021-03-08T18:00:00-05:00

With information available at our fingertips, discovering resources like a list of female architects, for example, should be a breeze. However, like most professions, these texts and resources were often written and curated by male writers. In 2021, female writers and curators continue to reclaim their place within academia, architectural history, and professional practice by writing themselves into the canon they have been excluded from.

If you look up "female architecture writers" on Google, the first search result is a blog created by architect, writer, researcher, and academic Dr. Harriet Harriss titled "Women Who Write Architecture."

Featured on Archinect: New website champions the remarkable contributions made by 50 pioneering women in architecture. Alice Constance Austin, one of the women featured on the site, showing model of house to Llano del Rio colonists, May 1, 1917. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library

In 2019 I interviewed Dr....

Stephanie Lin named incoming dean at The School of Architecture

2021-01-29T13:30:00-05:00

The School of Architecture, previously known as the School of Architecture at Taliesin, went through several changes this past year. While the announcement of its closure continued to make headlines since our first piece of coverage back in January 2020, the school's "potential future" seemed hopeful during reports in May.

After many transitions and public announcements, The School of Architecture announces Stephanie Lin's appointment as incoming Dean. Lin's work and background in academia and professional practice make her a refreshing addition to the school's future and leadership. Her work focuses on merging artistic and architectural modes of thinking scale, interiors, and installations. Her collaborative and individual work has been exhibited at Storefront for Art and Architecture, MoMA, and cneai= in Paris, to name a few.

"Gallery of Figures" - Office III were finalists at MoMA PS1 2017. Image courtesy of Office III

She received her B.A. in Architecture from UC Berkeley, follow...

Shortlist for the Moira Gemmill and MJ Long Prizes highlight female architects to watch

2021-01-22T16:15:00-05:00

Following the announcement of this year's Jane Drew Prize for Architecture and the Ada Louise Huxtable Prize the W Awards, formerly known as the Women in Architecture awards, announces its shortlist for the Moira Gemmill Prize and the MJ Long Prize.

Recognizing the work and design excellence of designers under the age of 45 the Moira Gemmil Prize has been awarded to influential architects such as Francesca Torzo, Rozana Montiel, and Xu Tiantian amongst others.

Below is this year's Moira Gemmil Prize shortlist:

Nerea Amorós Elorduy, founder of Creative Assemblages, based in Uganda

Nerea Amorós Elorduy, founder of Creative Assemblages, based in Uganda. Pictured here is Mwito School. Credit:Nerea Amoros Eldoruy/Courtesy of W Awards

Cristina Monteiro, co-founder of DK-CM, based in the UK

Cristina Monteiro, co-founder of DK-CM, based in the UK. Pictured here is Harrow Arts Centre Credit:Neil Perry/Courtesy of W Awards

Ana Clemente, Laura Lluch, Núria Vila, Eulàlia Daví, Ariadna Artigas, ...

Number of licensed Black female architects increases to 500

2020-12-21T17:55:00-05:00

The push for increasing the number of Black licensed architects has been an ongoing effort. Organizations like NOMA and individuals like Norma Merrick Sklarek, Paul Williams, Zena Howard, Phillip Freelon, Gabrielle Bullock, Curtis Moody, and many others have paved the way for a new generation of Black architects and architects of color to continue to make a difference within the industry.

(L) Norma Merrick Sklarek was among the first Black women to become a licensed architect in both New York state and California. She was also the first Black woman elected to the AIA College of Fellows. Image courtesy of AIA|LA (R) Georgia Louise Harris Brown was the first African American woman to graduate with an architecture degree and the second professionally licensed African American female architect in the nation. Image courtesy of Sarah Brown.

However, when it comes to licensed female architects, specifically Black female architects, the disparity in numbers is quite evident. Katherine Willia...

Architects Foundation Launches Black Women in Architecture Scholarship

2020-09-06T16:03:00-04:00

Mobilizing the architecture industry to provide opportunities for women, specifically for Black and minority women, has been an ongoing effort in recent years. Not only that, but the discussions over the state of racial and social injustice in field, the continued mistreatment of Black communities taking place in the larger world, and the growing and disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have together sparked greater efforts to re-evaluate racial biases inherent to many industries.

However, if there's anything the events of 2020 have taught the architecture industry, it's that architects, design professionals, and students should not be complacent with the mere "discussions" of making changes, but should instead focus on instilling real solutions in institutions and practices.

The AIA's philanthropic partner, the Architects Foundation, recently launched a new scholarship specifically to raise funds for Black Women in architecture. The Desiree V. Cooper Memorial fund aim...