Four years into our annual award for innovative architecture, we?re rethinking our approach In a year that?s seen the architecture profession grapple with issues of sexual harassment and gender-based workplace discrimination; racial representation (or a lack thereof); and architects? abilities to help mitigate the effects of a warming planet, one thing has, once again, been made clear: Design doesn?t exist in a vacuum.
That idea has always been the drumbeat of Curbed?s annual Groundbreakers awards. For the last three years, we?ve highlighted up-and-coming architects working at every scale in an effort to show that smart design can lead to stronger blocks, communities, and cities.
This year, though, we?re doing something different: Rather than conduct our usual nomination process, we?ve asked previous jurors and Groundbreakers winners to talk to us about mentorship and collaboration, in an effort to further dispel the myth of the virtuosic architect working alone?and learn about the folks whose work we should be keeping an eye on. ?It would?ve been great to have a mentor right out of school?and outside of [my] friends,? says architect and 2016 Groundbreaker Nadine Maleh, who serves as the Institute for Public Architecture?s executive director.
When asked about her experiences with mentorship, formal or otherwise, ?my instinct was: ?I haven?t had that experience,?? says Maleh. ?Most people have those professional allies or confidantes in their lives,? she adds, name-che...