Tag Archives: Women in Design

diversity, Interior Design

Women Lead Design: Ronnie Belizaire, Rachel Rouse, Kia Weatherspoon

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In this ongoing series, IIDA features women leading the design industry through change, innovation, and progress. Hear what they have to say on the importance of diversity in design, mentorship, inspiration, and the future of the profession.

The significance of design in our often-challenging and rapidly changing world cannot be overstated; it endows us with much-needed clarity, beauty, accessibility, and problem-solving. The women who are making design happen, at all stages in their careers, are the leaders of a better tomorrow. IIDA (virtually) connected with women making strides in design to discuss the urgency of this current moment, what’s next for design, and how a diversity of design thought is more crucial than ever.

Image courtesy of Ronnie Belizaire

Ronnie Belizaire, IIDA, Corporate Real Estate Manager, Americas, Daimler

IIDA: Throughout your career in design, how have you been a mentor to others? Has that been rewarding?

Ronnie Belizaire: I’ve had the opportunity to serve as a mentor, both formally and informally, on various occasions, and the one thing that always reigns true for me is the overwhelming feeling of gratitude I have for being trusted and able to pour into another person’s professional growth and development.

IIDA: What do you see as the role of women in design—particularly in light of our current times?

RB: It is simply good business to ensure that women are celebrated and elevated into leadership roles within the design industry.  I remember being in design school over 15 years ago and the only woman I studied as a design savant was Florence Knoll in my textbooks and course curriculum. While Florence was brilliant, I’m pretty certain she wasn’t the only woman who did design work worthy to be celebrated. Women bring a certain ability to translate the needs of all into their designs all while leading with empathy, and the design industry could benefit from that type of energy.

IIDA: What or who inspires you in your life and work?

RB: I am inspired by the lives of everyday people from all walks of life who make the world we live in more interesting and meaningful. Before COVID-19 began, I was an avid traveler both personally and professionally. I was adamant about visiting and seeing parts of the world that gave me a different perspective on what it means to live a life. While I enjoyed the finer things all these places had to offer, I was also intentional about always including stops where everyday people of a place live and work so I could truly have an immersive experience that I knew would leave a lasting imprint on me. My interactions with everyday people in any place I visit are usually some of my favorite moments of any trip. One of my personal mottos is “See the world, and bring it back home with you through the memories made.”

Image courtesy of Rachel Rouse

Rachel Rouse, IIDA, Principal, Director of Interiors, HOK

IIDA: Who has been an important mentor to you over the course of your career and how?

Rachel Rouse: I try to remember that everyone I meet knows something that I don’t and has something to teach me.  As a result, I have had many mentors throughout my career who pushed me to grow in different ways. The one that really sticks with me is Kim Hogan, my predecessor at HOK. She saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself. She took the time to actively recruit me to come work for her and then she stretched my limits by providing me with opportunities to interview directly with clients and learn from my mistakes in real-time. She passed early this year, and I was never able to ask her why. In some ways, I think I continue to push myself for her.

IIDA: Have you mentored others? Has that been rewarding and how? 
RR: I love working with my team to help them grow. I encourage my team members to reach for the next step and am a particular advocate for licensure. The best part of my job is growing with people and seeing someone you’ve worked with succeeding in their career feels like success for me too.

IIDA: What do you see as the role of women in design?
RR: We can be the change we wish to see in the world. I hope to see a more equitable society for my children. Our industry can be tough, particularly on parents and women of color. It’s the role of all women to lift each other up and do everything in our power to help each other grow and thrive.

IIDA: What or who inspires you? 
RR: I draw inspiration from film and theater performance. Something about a form of creativity that is so different from my day job is not only inspiring but often brings me joy and refreshes my mind.

Image courtesy of Kia Weatherspoon

Kia Weatherspoon, Principal and Interior Design Advocate, Determined by Design

IIDA: Who has been an important mentor to you over the course of your career?

Kia Weatherspoon: As a woman of color, I never saw designers who looked like me in leadership roles early on in my career. I had to learn to be my own hero. While the landscape lacked diversity, it did teach me that no one is going to advocate better for me than me. Once you can advocate for yourself, then you can advocate for others.

IIDA: Throughout your career in design, how have you been a mentor to others? Has that been rewarding?

KW: Due to my early experiences in the industry, I decided to become the leader I wanted to see. I adamantly make myself available to support any emerging designer or student through the various stages of their careers. Currently, I am actively mentoring and sponsoring ten emerging designers. Whether working with individuals or speaking to audiences, I am committed to sharing all the “secrets” no one told or offered me.

When speaking at Virginia Commonwealth University in January 2020, a student of color said to me, “You are the first interior designer of color I’ve ever met. When I saw you and heard your story, I could see myself in you. I needed that because I was tired of being the only one!” This student was considering dropping out of the program. I believe my success, presence, and willingness to show up are how I mentor every day. It is because of stories like this that I have returned to teaching. It is a call to action. There is a need for more diverse design professionals in academia.

For me, mentoring is not about reaping personal rewards, it is what I am supposed to do—a calling if you will. There is work to be done, so I will show up to be there for the industry. It is about empowering designers, and it is long overdue. If we can empower individual designers, we will elevate the profession as a whole.

IIDA: What do you see as the role of women in design—particularly in light of our current times?

KW: Women can better position themselves by acknowledging that our innate level of empathy and understanding make us an asset to a team and/or deal. We can position ourselves for greater success by using empathy as a value add. We put others first, which is a strength. This allows us to take into consideration the whole person or team experience as it relates to the end-user as well as for relationship and team building. I think we need to use our empathetic lens to create more intentional, inclusive design outcomes and teams.

IIDA: What or who inspires you?

KW: Dawn Myers, Founder of THE MOST! She’s not in the A&D space, but she is an entrepreneur disrupting and innovating technology in the beauty industry. I love a disrupter who will pull the curtain back so you can see where change needs to happen. She’s tackling venture capitalist spaces and their inequities head-on. Simultaneously, she is creating a technology infrastructure that doesn’t exist in the beauty market for women of color. Also, Damon Lawrence of Homage Hospitality Group. He’s building a Black-centric boutique hotel brand. It pays homage to all things Black and African culture in the hospitality space—down to the products in his hotels. Another disrupter and founder!

career development, Cheryl S. Durst, diversity, Interior Design profession

When Women Lead, Design Thrives

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In the spring of 2020, in response to a rapidly changing world, IIDA developed a weekly series of conversations focused on the impact of sudden change on the design community, and in turn, design’s role in impacting our collective futures.

The Collective D(esign) webinar series saw the curating of dialogues centering on topics ranging from healthcare, hospitality, and workplace design to education, product design, sustainability, and more. As part of IIDA’s 2020 NeoConnect programming, IIDA presented Collective D(esign): Women Lead Design to center the voices of women on the importance of ensuring diversity and equity in the future of design. With an eye on leadership and how women specifically lead, the panel addressed the importance of being able to see yourself reflected in your leaders and managers.

The discussion was hosted by IIDA CEO and Executive Vice President Cheryl S. Durst, Hon. FIIDA, and featured panelists Robin Klehr Avia, FIIDA, regional managing principal at Gensler from the IIDA New York Chapter; Gabrielle Bullock, FAIA, IIDA, principal and director of global diversity at Perkins and Will from the IIDA Southern California Chapter; Sarah Kuchar, IIDA, creative director of Sarah Kuchar Studio from the IIDA Illinois Chapter; and Angie Lee, AIA, IIDA, partner and design director of interiors at FXCollaborative from IIDA’s New York Chapter. 

Although the movement for gender-based equality in the workplace is decades-old, the recent “Me Too” movement brought to the forefront the dangers that a homogeneous workplace culture can produce, particularly when leadership roles lack diversity in gender. As society faces current challenges—an ongoing global health pandemic, and a reckoning for an urgent need for racial justice—it’s imperative to act from an intersectional lens and strive to promote leadership and equity across demographics including race, sexual orientation, age, and socio-economic backgrounds as well as career experience. 

“I believe that this is an opportunity for us to dismantle the systematic racism that exists, and address and reset our profession to truly, with eyes wide open, embrace, celebrate, and apply unique perspectives through an inclusive and just lens,” says Gabrielle Bullock. She notes that although this movement and awareness may be new to some, it has been the sustained reality for others. By encouraging change in our industry, we can better support leadership from different demographics, and more successfully design with an informed vision for a more diverse and inclusive use of interiors.

“We cannot deny the power of representation—seeing someone who looks like you, seeing them in a critical position of leadership is so  important.”

— Cheryl Durst

One of the most effective ways to elicit real change is through recognizing and honoring the differences that exist. Race, ethnicity, gender identity, orientation, and socioeconomic background all contribute significantly to the ways individuals relate to the world around them. To navigate a world, and especially a workplace environment and culture, that doesn’t take these differences into account can be difficult and create roadblocks to focusing on the work.

“Being brought up in a male-dominated profession, culture, and society, the advice that I was given and that I applied to myself would not work out most of the time.” Angie Lee explains, “I had to try everything until I found what worked for me. And it was a little challenging because it took a little longer to find my voice, find my footing.” She notes that although she didn’t always have a lot of women to lean on, she did have male figures that believed in her and pushed her to develop skills and get out of her comfort zone, recognizing that “it was always a model of leadership that didn’t fit me.”

“Give opportunity, and give it young. You might think that you’re [giving opportunity] because it’s a woman more often than you should, but I guarantee you’re probably just not doing it enough.”

— Sarah Kuchar

This process of conforming to a workforce not built for you nor led by those like you creates an added burden for young professionals. Instead of spending time developing and innovating the industry, they can spend years just learning how to navigate these settings. The experience of learning from a leader that you see yourself in and one who knows how to move through the world from a similar background is invaluable and important to remember when you move into a leadership role.

When Robin Klehr Avia was a young designer interviewing at architectural firms, she noted that she only had one interview in which she was interviewed by a woman. “Margo Walsh affirmed for me that it was possible for a woman to be recognized and rewarded. There was somebody in my image across the table and she was in charge and the boss and that had an incredible effect on me.”

Avia differentiates this experience from traditional mentorship, recognizing that although Graham was indeed a mentor, she was more importantly a sponsor. While you learn a lot about the industry and your profession through mentorship, you still need someone to put you in the room. “it’s about a sponsor opening doors for us—it’s about someone putting us in a place where we can succeed. I think that that is really what we need to be for other women. We need to be their sponsors.”

“I see it as a responsibility and honor to be able to mentor, sponsor, share, you know to anybody who needs it and wants it.”

— Gabrielle Bullock

Mentorship is an invaluable part of shaping yourself as a professional. But without a sponsor, you don’t always have access to the opportunities that grow your career. “I was given many opportunities to fail,” explains Lee. She notes that as she looks back she can now see that many of the men she considered mentors were actually sponsors that gave her opportunities to grow. “I didn’t meet my mentors until I joined organizations like IIDA.”

Bullock notes that she recognizes the importance in her visibility and success. “I am a role model to some. An example of what you could be, how far you could go. As a black woman in this industry, I think of it as an honor to provide this for others.”

“I’ve been at this for 44 years. I think the best part is that I can look back and see the structure that others are building upon the foundation.”

 — Robin Klehr Avia

For some designers, it’s not enough to work within the current systems and processes. Sarah Kucher started her own business after working in larger firms and finds that being a woman-owned business leader and designer has given her the opportunity to provide the guidance and help that she had received in her career. She notes that “there is a strong movement of supporting women-owned businesses,” and credits her visibility with forming an alliance within the Chicago creative community. “I’ve connected with several female entrepreneurs in the city and creative fields we meet quarterly and we help each other.”

Leading as a woman is inherently different, and Kucher recognizes that “Leadership is about organizing people and getting people in a big group to have and feel purpose.” She reflects that being a successful leader isn’t about being the most technically skilled but rather effectively motivating and creating a collaborative space.

“How we came up through the ranks, what we want to change going forward, and how to help us dream big enough. That’s what I lost along the way trying on these models of leadership that never jogged well.”

— Angie Lee

Bullock recognizes that “there is a difference between management and leadership,” and “navigating that line in figuring out when to be one or the other has been very interesting.” 

Leadership can look many different ways, but the most rewarding aspect of leading can be observing the changes that you have actively made, and those that your visibility creates. Being that beacon for younger designers can provide the freedom to carve out their space in the industry and courage to take more risks.

“I can see women that I’ve sponsored making the world a better place; I talk to a lot of young people I work with about placing value on significance over success,” Bullock reflects. “I think it’s important in that significance isn’t like a one-off—it’s not about what you did last week or last month but it’s really about what you do over the course of many years it’s your life’s work.”

Watch the full conversation that further explores leadership and diversity in design, examining race and gender, while looking forward to the future, finding optimism during a tenuous time.

career development, IIDA, Interior Design

Women Lead Design: Gina Berndt, Tara Headley, Nila Leiserowitz

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In this ongoing series, IIDA features women leading the design industry in a time of unprecedented change. Hear what they have to say on the importance of diversity in design, mentorship, inspiration, and the future of the profession. 

In case you are still monitoring the passage of time, March was Women’s History Month. Though many celebrations, big and small, were overshadowed by the turmoil of a global pandemic, we are reminded that even in the most uncertain times, creating space to honor and celebrate others remains just as important. The significance of design during this unprecedented moment cannot be overstated; it endows us with much-needed clarity, beauty, accessibility, and problem-solving that are necessary for a rapidly changing world. The women who are making design happen at at varying stages in their careers, are leaders of a better tomorrow, and so we extend this focus beyond March. 

IIDA (virtually) connected with Gina Berndt, FIIDA, ASID, principal and managing director at Perkins and Will; Tara Headley, Assoc. IIDA, intermediate designer at Hendrick; and Nila Leiserowitz, FIIDA, FASID, business consultant and former regional managing principal at Gensler, to discuss the urgency of this current moment, what’s next for design, and how a diversity of design thought is more crucial than ever.

Gina Berndt, FIIDA, ASID, Principal and Managing Director, Perkins and Will, Chicago

IIDA: Who has been an important mentor to you over the course of your career and how/why?

Gina Berndt: I’ve had many mentors in my career, but if I had to name one it would be my father. Though he died when I was just 24, I learned a great deal from observing him in his work and life. He was generous and related well to humanity in the broadest sense. I am very grateful for his influence on me.

IIDA: Have you had the opportunity to mentor others? Has that been rewarding and how?

GB: I hope I have been a mentor to others. It is most rewarding to see individuals blossom in their careers as leaders, whether at Perkins and Will or at other firms. I am proud of their inherent talent, but also their compassion, business acumen, engagement in the community, and success. I dream of having a lovely dinner with all of them to express my gratitude one day.

IIDA: What do you see as the role of women in design in light of our current crisis?

GB: Women often lead with honesty, patience, empathy, and compassion. These are always valuable attributes, but this crisis demands that we all lead with these gifts.  

IIDA: What or who inspires you?

GB: Many things, but at my core, my family. I am inspired to be a role model for my daughter, nieces and nephews, a good life partner to my husband, and a trusted friend to my sisters. I am also inspired by beauty overall which is why I have always been drawn to design.

Tara Headley, Assoc. IIDA, Intermediate Designer, Hendrick, Atlanta

IIDA: Have you mentored others? Has that been rewarding and how?

Tara Headley: I have always viewed mentorship as a vital part of our industry. I believe there is true value in helping the next generation of designers overcome challenges by offering insight from the perspective of someone who has faced similar situations. I have been able to be a mentor through my position on the IIDA Georgia Chapter Board as a campus center leader, and I am hoping to step into the Vice President of Student Affairs role in the near future.

In addition, this academic year I have the privilege of being the alumni mentor for the SCAD Atlanta interior design department. Visting the campus, sitting in on classes, giving feedback on presentations and theses, and now shifting to virtual lectures—those interactions with students have been extremely rewarding. Several students have since reached out for one on one career advice and I’m humbled to be seen as a valued mentor. Knowing that the path I’ve taken inspires others is motivation for me to continue giving back.

IIDA: What or who inspires you?

TH: I am inspired by women of color in leadership positions. They are the ones that have blazed a trail to success and set the example for design professionals like myself to follow. Knowing the obstacles they have had to overcome to make it to a position of power inspires me to fight to achieve that as well. Seeing them makes me believe in myself even more.

Nila Leiserowitz, FIIDA, FASID, Business Consultant and Former Regional Managing Principal, Gensler, North Central

IIDA: Who have you considered to be your mentor and how have they influenced you?

Nila Leiserowitz: I am a strong believer that mentorship is vital to a career in design. A mentor can remain the same throughout your career or you may have different mentors at different points in your life. If I had to identify an important mentor throughout my career, it would be women leaders at all levels—my peers, bright emerging women, and women in other industries that are risk-takers. Right now, my most important mentors are women from the International Women’s Forum.

IIDA: What do you think is the role of women in today’s crisis?

NL: Women have an innate quality to see minutia and at the same time understand big strategies or moves that need to be made. We know how to pull the problem apart and look at all the components of the problem in order to have a thoughtful approach to moving forward. Looking at all the parts, we can celebrate the good within the problem, which is very important right now. We then also have a clearer picture of the core issues that need to be solved. We can then define a strategy and team to accomplish the right results. I am always so amazed by how women think. We are blessed!

IIDA: Who or what inspires your practice?

NL: his is not a simple question to answer. I do try to live in the moment as much as I can, so inspiration shows up in my life in unexpected ways at different times. Sometimes, small and simple things inspire me; other times, inspiration can be as big as being on top of a mountain and seeing the world like so few people see it. If I had to narrow down to two overarching inspirations, it would be people and nature. In the best situation for me, it is when nature and people collide. That is an amazing thing.