America’s Hidden Gem (TM)

Hi readers! It’s #FutureArchitectFriday. A day to celebrate those pushing themselves to becoming licensed architects.

Name:

Sydney Rose Maubert

Hometown:

Homestead, FL

Educational Status:

Fourth Year Student

How would you describe your experience
as a Black Architecture student?

Given the circumstances of my life, I
have typically been one of the few black students or black women in my classes, in spite of me living in Miami, which is famed for its diversity. Coming into a program where I was a minority was not a surprise to me or culture shock, given my life experience and the welcoming nature of my fellow students, faculty and staff. However, I do think the pedagogy of architecture can be more inclusive by incorporating more women and people of color into its curriculum. I always found it unusual that there aren’t many black architects represented in history or in the curriculum, and this may be because of the constraints of the field. The existing Greco- Roman paternal model, crafted in L’Ecole de Beaux Arts makes has provided invaluable principles to our education but might become more valuable or legible to all students if these same principles were presented on a worldly scale (ie. Asian architecture, African Architecture, South American etc). We need to have a diverse panel of architects designing for every user.

Why do you want to get your license?

I think there is a lot that I can learn from other people, both in practice and not. Architecture would grant me the type of mobility and education I crave. I enjoy the idea of crafting new realities for people, out of the existing built/natural environment or preserving what is already beautiful. I think people’s quality of life can be greatly impacted by their physical environment and I’d like to help shape people’s realities for the better.

Biggest inspiration/influence?

My biggest influences are several professors I’ve met, including Professor Teofilo Victoria, Germane Barnes and Elizabeth Plater Zyberk. I also enjoy Caribbean, French and Spanish Mediterranean Architecture greatly, I often use them as precedents for my school work.

How important is representation?

I think there’s a self – defeating culture
that is cultivated in architecture, which we are notorious for and the students have grown to appreciate, for its lesson in constructive self criticism. However, it’s important to think about how that criticism might translate to the psyche of a student coming from a professor who is different from the student in every physical way, and has never leveled his or herself with the student. In an effort to treat every student with equal conditions, you forget that we are seeking equity. Having more representation in the field and classroom will help the esteem of the minority student, and better the designs of the communities we share.

Favorite quote/poem/song/etc.?

Favorite book is “Augustown”.