14/04/2022
Sara Zewde (Founding principal at Studio Zewde in Harlem, New York City)
A native of the Gulf Coast, Sara Zewde’s view of architecture completely shifted after Hurricane Katrina happened in 2005. Following the traditional path of going to design school (she studied urban planning at MIT and landscape architecture at Harvard), completing internships, and then securing a job after graduation, Zewde eventually ventured out to establish her own practice, which does a hybrid of landscape architecture, urban design, and public art.
Last year, Studio Zewde won the Architectural League of New York’s award for 2021 Emerging Voice. Made up of a multidisciplinary team, the Harlem–based firm utilizes “design methodology that syncs site interpretation and narrative with a dedication to the craft of construction.” Zewde’s work bridges the gap between built environments and the communities that coexist within them. As stated on her firm’s website, “Studio Zewde is devoted to creating enduring places where people belong.”
Architectural Digest: What obstacles have you overcome while navigating your career path in this field?
Sara Zewde: It’s been a bumpy road, but remaining clear-minded about my commitment to elevating culture, ecology, and craft in my design practice helped me to navigate obstacles along the way.
What piece of advice would you give to BIPOC (black indigenous and people of color) who are interested in architecture but don’t know how or where to start?
Read. Read what feels relevant to your interests in design, whether or not it directly relates to architecture.
Her theses at Harvard was titled Ecologies of Memory : Landscape Architectural Methods in an Expanded Understanding of Culture.
While at Harvard, Zewde was named the 2014 National Olmsted Scholar by the Landscape Architecture Foundation.[2] At MIT, she received the Silberberg Memorial Award for Urban Design and the Hebbert Award for Contribution to the Department of Urban Studies and Planning.[2] Prior to teaching at Harvard, Zewde taught at the Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation and the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture.
https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/black-women-architects-and-designers
https://studio-zewde.com/about
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sara_Zewde
https://nextcity.org/features/valongo-port-sara-zewde-rio-landscape-architect