Far from over, discussions on race and gender in architecture are only beginning to gain momentum. One of their outcomes is the emergence of projects and initiatives that seek to map and identify Black architects who, despite their numbers and prolific activity, are rarely cited—or published.
Still rare and absolutely necessary, these initiatives represent an important step toward fairer, more egalitarian recognition in the field of architecture. Below, we present four investigative projects that aim to identify and shed light on these professionals and their work.
Arquitetas Negras Project
The Arquitetas Negras project arose from a personal concern and constant questioning: where are the Black female architects who are rarely seen in architecture and design exhibitions, the job market, academic spaces, publications, and historical records? The project was born from the desire to provide visibility and stimulate the work of Black Brazilian female architects. To address this, the group is mapping their work and building a platform for both research and hiring architectural services throughout Brazil. The goal is to create a network to disseminate, circulate, and strengthen the work of Black female architects, contributing to significant changes in the field.
Coordinators: Gabriela de Matos and Bárbara Oliveira
Black Architects Around the World: Mapping the Black Presence in the Fields of Architecture, Urbanism, and Urban Planning
Through a diasporic lens, the project aims to bring the presence and production of Black architects of different nationalities, located in various parts of the world, into discussions on architecture, urbanism, and urban planning. It thus builds an important and necessary transatlantic perspective for discussing the practices arising from these fields. The investigation covers dimensions such as origin, place of education, area of practice, main projects, references, and publications, among other information, aiming to contribute to the creation of an unconventional map and analyze it through potential connections, resonances, echoes, dissonances, and specificities.
In this first stage, the project focuses on presenting 100 Black architects and their work as a starting point for future readings and analyses of this arrangement. By sharing this mapping, the project also aims to enable students in the field to use the website as an initial research source, expanding a database of references that generally excludes Black architects, who are commonly made invisible by both academic bibliographies and commercial publications.
In Brazil, demographic data regarding the race/ethnicity of architects and urban planners is nonexistent, even within the professional councils and institutes. Consequently, the project team has created a form for voluntary contributions regarding Black Brazilian architects. Anyone wishing to contribute can access the form here.
Team:
Prof. Gabriela Leandro Pereira - Coordinator / Professor at the Faculty of Architecture - UFBA
Bianca Ariele Goes Soares - undergraduate student in Architecture and Urbanism - UFBA
Deborah Sales Gomes - undergraduate student in Architecture and Urbanism - UFBA
Isaque Santos Pinheiro - undergraduate student in Architecture and Urbanism - UFBA
Natália Maria Costa Santos - undergraduate student in Architecture and Urbanism - UFBA
Paula Milena Lima - undergraduate student in Architecture and Urbanism - UFBA
Black Invisible Female Architects
The project developed by the Arquitetas Invisíveis (Invisible Female Architects) collective involves mapping Black women in the world of architecture and urbanism who have been and remain active as protagonists in the profession internationally, with a primary focus on race and gender. This is only the first step toward eradicating prejudice and deconstructing stereotypes, changing the reality of invisibility faced by these professionals (and those yet to come). The collective questioned where these women were, given the absence of their names in academic curricula, magazines, publications, competitions, and acclaimed works. It was not a lack of representation, but rather the invisibility of their names. While some were already part of the Arquitetas Invisíveis project, they were few. The discussion regarding Black women in the profession began to demand recognition due to this lack of representation in architectural repertoires, whether as design references or active market professionals. Notably, the research was conducted by a Black woman who joined the collective as the coordinator of this study.
Research Coordinator: Raquel Freire
Mapping of Black Female Architects
Researchers Andréia Moassab and Joice Berth are interested in deepening reflections on racism, machismo, and sexism in both education and professional practice in architecture and urbanism. They recently published an article in *Arquitetas Invisíveis* magazine (Issue 2), based on interviews with eleven Black Brazilian and African female architects. Their responses painted a dramatic picture of the difficulties of being a Black woman during university and, later, in professional practice. In schools, barriers range from a lack of representation—no Black female architect is used as an example during classes—to the exclusion from group work. Professionally, harassment is constant, whether on construction sites or in offices. Given the qualified yet limited scope of the interviews, the researchers launched an online form to map Black female architects and architecture students, along with their career paths.
The duo is particularly interested in understanding how Black women have positioned themselves in the field, as well as their main difficulties and challenges. It is worth noting that progress driven by racial quotas has increased the number of Black female graduates. However, how does the job market treat them? How did the university treat them? How many are in the job market, formal or otherwise, and possess racial consciousness? Of those in the market, are they formally or informally employed? Why are those who are not in the market excluded? What situations of covert or overt racism are experienced in daily professional life, at university, or when dealing with clients? How does machismo factor into this equation of oppression?
The goal of this mapping is to compile material that serves as a benchmark, a tool for advocacy, and an assessment of the nuances and practices of erasure that affect Black women, particularly in this field, given that racism is a primary structural force in social relations. The form can be filled out here.
Research Leads: Andreia Moassab and Joice Berth.
Responsible for online material: Bruno Oliveira
This article was written by Romullo Baratto. The translation is powered by AI.
