Gender narratives in the professional trajectories of women architects in South Africa

Ellmann, Ann-Marie

Gender narratives in the professional trajectories of women architects in South Africa

Thesis / Dissertation

2023

Abstract

In South Africa, women represent just over half of the population, yet in the architectural student body, more women are registered than men. However, in the professional realm, just over a quarter are female registered architects, of which only a fraction is black. This raises questions about what happens to young women architects as they enter their profession, as there is little information in South Africa about the possibility that they may face, as women. The research explores this possibility through engagement with the lived experiences of women architects who have been practising architecture for a minimum of five years. South Africa is a developing country and thus the role of the architect is important as a key role player in the development of its spaces. The architect is entrusted to represent and design for a diverse set of people to cater and provide solutions for the spaces they will occupy. A qualitative research study was undertaken, and in-depth one-on-one interviews were held with nine women practising architecture in South Africa. Thematic analysis was used to corral points of consensus, variation, and critical salience concerning the operation of gender as a dynamic within the data. The women, through sharing their experiences, supported the notion that being gendered as a woman as an identity is in competition with the identity of the architect. Both identities require long hours and a full-time commitment to live, eat, breathe. Compared to international studies, in South Africa this tension of gender and the professional identity in architecture has not been addressed, probably due to the emotive historical and political background of the country. The research study supports the findings in international literature that women architects often become community architects. Most women believed that an individualistic architectural identity was unattainable for a more Starchitect culture. The nine participants revealed that they endured the prescribed gendered script for “women” as a distraction and obstacle in their careers that left them exhausted. The current gendered script is a complex map that is integrated with intersectional aspects of age, position in society, position in career/company, access to opportunities of mentorship/sponsorship, grasping one's own understanding of gendering, and role player engagement in different contexts. Keywords: Women, narrative, experiences, architecture, architect, gendering, professional career, South Africa

Keywords

Construction Economics and Management

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