International Women’s Day 2024: Sharing Empowering Stories and Understanding the Transformative Power of Architecture

Expanding beyond just March 8th, ArchDaily acknowledges and celebrates the ongoing contributions of women who influence the development of the built environment globally. The “Women in Architecture” theme is central to our content strategy, underscoring our daily commitment to highlight the vital role and impact of female architects.

After arguing in 2021 “Why is it still important to talk about “female architects”?, contributing to “rebalancing forces and adjusting narratives” in 2022, and focusing on the achievements of “innovative women at the forefront of global challenges” in 2023, on this International Women’s Day, we extend an invitation to you to watch ArchDaily’s documentary “Women in Architecture.” This project, initiated by Sky-Frame and directed by Boris Noir, offers a captivating exploration of the role of women in shaping the architectural landscape, looking specifically at the professional and personal journeys of three remarkable women in architecture, each contributing something unique to the world: Toshiko Mori, Gabriela Carrillo, and Johanna Meyer-Grohbrügge. To inspire our community with their stories and accomplishments, we are pleased to announce a sequel film, set to be launched in 2024. This installment will showcase three new female architects, including Tosin Oshinowo, a Nigerian architect, designer, and curator of the 2023 Sharjah Architecture Triennial.

+ 2

The 2024 Women’s International Day, according to the UN is centered on “Invest in women: accelerate progress”, focusing on the fact that gender equality is the greatest human rights challenge, to create prosperous economies and a healthy planet, while the official platform of the 8th of March is concentrating its efforts on inspiring others to understand and value women’s inclusion, to forge a better world. For ArchDaily, it was important to share once again a project close to our hearts, the “Women in Architecture” documentary that aims to inspire first and foremost, enhance the visibility of female changemakers and empower them to achieve their utmost potential.

Read more about the featured architects below, and stay tuned for our second documentary. 

Toshiko Mori and Good Curiosity in the Exercise of Architecture

In architecture, context is what concerns human existence in a given place. Climate, culture, geography, and pre-existences, to name just a few. For Toshiko Mori, a Japanese architect based in the United States, context is everything that arouses curiosity about the people we design for. In almost four decades as the head of her office in New York, Mori has had the opportunity to exercise her interest in design practice and academia, managing to build her buildings in contexts as diverse as China, the U.S., and Senegal.

Johanna Meyer-Grohbrügge and the Spatialization of Content

From ending up by accident in architectural studies, to eventually falling in love with the complexity of the field and the multitude of its layers, Johanna Meyer-Grohbrügge was amazed by the dual nature of architecture; its intellectual aspect, and physical outcome. Founder of Meyer-Grohbrügge in Berlin, the architect, and her studio seek to spatialize content, create relationships, and find solutions for living together.

Women in Architecture: Gabriela Carrillo

Mexican architect Gabriela Carrillo has built an exemplary career and is passionate about the city, territory, and diversity. Her widely awarded works, first in partnership with Mauricio Rocha and now running her studio, have become the reference image when discussing contemporary architecture in Mexico. Her projects translate the world’s needs, developing constant work to recognize the values of the territory to provide spaces that dignify its inhabitants. Situated between praxis, theory, and research, her interests are focused on the every day, leading a flexible and dynamic practice that allows her to maintain a balance between working and living.