Women in STEM: Architecture Conversations

Architecture spans both the Arts and STEM and is one of the reasons for advocating that  STEM become STEAM and include the Arts in the acronym. When I began the ADR series on Women in STEM, I received a request to include an article on women in Architecture. What follows is a conversation with two of the professionals at Hollywood-based 5+Design: Associate Principal Mi Sun Lim and Senior Designer Bahar Mahgerefteh.

Associate Principal Mi Sun Lim

We begin with the 5+design’s communication director asking for Associate Principal Mi Sun Lim response to questions regarding women within architecture.

Q.) Can you analyze the gender gap in architecture and share your experience in the field?

A.) First of all, it is important that we acknowledge that there is an imbalance of gender ratio in the profession of architecture. And that this is a problem for the profession that needs to embrace all forms of people and environment. And the problem worsens as one matures through the profession. This set of questions should be addressed to the men in architecture. Women personally experience all the consequences of gender imbalance.

Q.) Why in your opinion do you think that although women make up roughly half of all students in American graduate schools of architecture, the field continues to be overwhelmingly dominated by males.

A.) Only 42% of architecture school is made up of female students. That hardly qualifies as “roughly half”. The question is, what would make anyone want to be an architect? And if you’re a young woman, would seeing very successful and well recognized female architects be a draw to the profession? This question is larger than the profession of architecture – it is a common issue that also applies to engineering, politics, and many other disciplines.

Early female architects went unnoticed while their male partners earned all of the recognition. Mies van der Rohe was elevated to the pantheon of Modernist masters while Lilly Reich, a close collaborator on most of their well-known projects, died in poverty and anonymity. Robert Venturi accepted the 1991 Pritzker Prize, while his wife and partner, Denise Scott Brown, went all but unrecognized.

Q.) Compare women’s role in architecture then vs. now as well as what you see for the future. How has the role of women changed over the last half century

A.) At least through modern media, women are given more visibility today than half a century ago. Given the current trajectory, more women will be joining the field.

Q.) What has your experience been and have you faced any of the stigmas associated to women working in STEM fields?

A.) There’s been incidents working through various work places and cultures where I’ve personally faced stigmas associated with gender, race, and age sometimes to my advantage.

Q. Why do you think such a large ratio exists between men and women working in architecture and do you see this gab closing? ( is it largely because women are largely uninterested in Arch or do you think a consensus exists regarding which fields are deemed more masculine thus turning the female population off to the prospect of becoming an architect)

A. Presence of people in aggregate numbers can earn more visibility, voice and power. It is absurd to insinuate that architecture is more masculine. Architects design built environment. And half the environment is women. To assign gender to the profession would be to dismiss the existence of women.

Q. What do you feel is lost by having so few women working in the field and what societal barriers do women need to overcome in order to enter the field?

A. For the majority of the profession who are men, it should be acknowledged that having so few women in the field does not mean that women are not capable with the work.

Senior Designer Bahar Mahgerefteh

Women have been active in the professional field of architecture for over a century now. Yet the profession is still visibly male dominated. While that is not at all surprising and unusual to me, I believe that the profession is facing changes which will be more prominent in the next few decades compare to the last few decades. The aesthetics in architectural design today, are moving more towards delicacy, transparency, colors, light, and openness. All of which can be as a result of (if not benefit from) female affluence in architecture.

Yet, design is only one element of the profession of architecture. Construction management, site management, project management, collaborations with the clients, contractors, and manufacturers, are all major positions which are rarely held by female architects. That to me is where the changes will need to happen. For, until women are recognized as professionals who are able to take on serious tasks and responsibilities, we will not hold an equal place in this profession as our male colleagues.

But there is also a reality that whether we like it or not, should get accepted. Male nurses have been around since the 3rd century. Yet their role is still not fully accepted in our society. Female roles in architecture might suffer for the same reason; sexuality in Architecture. I think women will find a comfortable place as designers in the field, but not so much as the Architect in charge who runs the show and gets the project built.

Let’s put this out there that we women, whether by nature or by choice, are part of the reason for not making the changes. The majority of my female colleges are much more willing to take on design tasks behind the desk than challenging themselves on the job site. It can be argued that our society is not ready for, or welcoming of, such role shifts. Also, the socioeconomic and cultural settings we live in keep women wanting roles that are more feminine and in stress-free environments. And for that, changes will be gradual and slow.

Many female architects prefer to pursue less demanding paths such as Landscape Architecture, Interior Design, Installations, or Jewelry design. They choose these paths even after going through the long and rough road of Architecture school. Architecture by nature is a physically and mentally challenging field that doesn’t give women much room to balance work and family. This perhaps is the main reason why woman are not, and probably will not be, equal to men in this profession. That is true until women decide sacrificing family is worth the profession. In which case, if it occurs, it won’t be sustained.

Again, I believe the presence of woman in architecture will help bring design elements that will make our buildings and living environment more elegant, graceful, playful, and invigorating. Changes are happening culturally, socially, and economically that will impact the gap between gender differences in Architecture. There are efforts being made to close the gap, without a doubt. Will women ever be fully and equally accepted in a profession which is historically masculine? Maybe not.

Editor-in-Chief

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