Pioneering architects
A special series highlighting architects who overcame adversity to make an impact
Fewer than one in five new architects identify as racial or ethnic minorities, and just about two in five are women, according to the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. As we work to achieve a future of greater equity, diversity, and inclusion in the profession, we can learn important lessons in reckoning with the past. The Pioneering Architects series celebrates the legacy of architects who overcame unimaginable obstacles. In sharing their stories, we aim to pay overdue tribute to their talents, honor their courage, and learn from their experiences.
Career and the profession
Pioneering Architects: The McKissack Family
The McKissack family has been in the AEC business for five generations, since before the Civil War.
Career and the profession
Pioneering Architects: Eugene Choy
Eugene Kinn Choy was the second Chinese-American member of AIA, and a pioneering force in the architecture of Southern California.
Career and the profession
Pioneering Architects: Ethel Bailey Furman
The first Black woman to practice architecture in Virginia, Ethel Bailey Furman designed more than 200 buildings.
Art, history, and religion
Pioneering Architects: Calvin T.S. Brent and John E. Brent
Calvin T.S. Brent and John E. Brent left a lasting architectural legacy and community impact in Washington, D.C., and Buffalo.
Career and the profession
Pioneering Architects: The Cassell Family
Albert Cassell (1895-1969) transformed Howard University’s campus and curriculum, impacting generations of architecture students – including his own children.
Art, history, and religion
Julian Abele: Honoring a legacy no longer in “the shadows”
Julian Abele, the first African American to earn an architecture degree from the University of Pennsylvania, designed Duke University Chapel, as well as more than 30 additional campus buildings.
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