Throughout the month of March, we celebrated some of our female colleagues by highlighting some of their accomplishments, specialisations, and contributions to the office. We are so pleased to see how this very diverse body of women has grown in the past decade within the office. As part of the ADAM Architecture mission to provide a greater sense of inclusivity within the practice, a small number of us organised a focus group for women in the office which convenes regularly to offer support, resources, insights on all things related to gender dynamics and social conditioning within the profession and wider industry. More importantly this has also provided a much-needed platform for in-depth personal discussion.
Much like our design approach, the ADAM Architecture's Women in Architecture Group seeks to learn from the lessons of the past to chart the course ahead more clearly. Some topics which have been discussed by the group include sub-conscious bias, confidence, networking tips, and the gender pay gap. We have enjoyed welcoming our male peers to our discussions which has helped to build a closer sense of rapport within office culture, often providing rather comical bonding moments and light relief when stories are shared, and experiences recognised.
We would like to take this moment to thank all those who have taken part in speaking, organising, and supporting our events and look forward to an even more fruitful year in continuing to work towards a more equitable industry and to empower our staff to nurture fulfilling careers.
Our selection of female colleague highlights are below (left to right, top row, bottom row):
Diana Yu – Senior Associate, B.Arch, AIA, NCARB
Diana is an experienced designer and project leader, working on projects both within the UK and abroad, across all RIBA stages. Educated at the University of Notre Dame, Diana specialises in both classical architectural design and traditional urban design. Her portfolio of experience includes speculative housing schemes, inner-city urban regeneration projects, and high-end residential projects for both public and private sectors. Outside of project work, she is also deeply committed to promoting traditional architecture and diversity/inclusivity within the workplace.
Lois Lawn – Senior Urban Designer, MA
Lois is an urban designer formerly from a commercial architectural background. She joined the practice in 2019 and has enjoyed learning more about the principles and values of traditional urban design. Her love for urbanism started eleven years ago from entering motherhood. In particular, she is interested in child-friendly streets and the walkable neighbourhoods. High on her agenda is sustainable urbanism as well as maintaining a healthy work/life balance. She is currently co-ordinating the ADAM Mentorship Programme and is looking forward to future leadership responsibilities within the company.
Eleanor Measham – Architectural Designer, M.Arch.II, B.A.Cantab
Eleanor is a designer with transatlantic experience, both professional and academic. She is a registered Architect in the state of New York, having completed her masters at Yale and worked in NYC. She has focused on high-end residential projects and joined ADAM in 2018 to lead the interior design for the Levine building at Trinity College, Oxford. She is currently completing her UK licence to become a dual-qualified Architect.
Katie Hubbard – Architectural Assistant Part II
Katie has been with ADAM for 4.5 years and is experienced in taking projects from inception up to planning, and often works closely with the Directors on various external competitions. Passionate about high-quality traditional detailing, and with an in-depth understanding of the principles of classical architecture, Katie won the ADAM design competition in 2017 and 2018 and was delighted to be invited to judge the competition the following year.
Dr. Helen Lawrence Beaton – Senior Architectural Historian
Helen is an architectural historian and specialises in the architecture of the early eighteenth century and the English Baroque, in particular. She is currently writing a new monograph on the work of Thomas Archer and regularly publishes and lectures on this subject. As the in-house architectural historian for the practice, Helen creates detailed histories of properties including phasing diagrams to explain how a building has developed over time. She also conducts character analyses of towns and villages to inform our urbanism work.
Siyu Zhao – Architectural Assistant Part II
Siyu joined the practice in 2018 after graduating from the University of Notre Dame in the US. Having been formally trained in classical architecture and traditional urban design, she has been involved in the design of several speculative housing and high-end residential projects from concept design to construction stages. Beyond the drafting board, she leads the ADAM Future Group, a young professional’s group within the practice, and is also in the final stages of registering as an architect in the US.
Rossana Miles – Senior Associate
Rossana is an experienced architect and one of ADAM Architecture senior managers. She leads teams to deliver a variety of projects, from jewel box interior refurbishments to multi-million new-build schemes in central London and in the countryside. She is an enthusiastic champion for gender diversity in the industry and has contributed to the creation of ADAM’s Women in Architecture group, which she leads together with her female colleagues.
Dr. Gail Kenton – Senior Associate
Gail is an experienced chartered architect and specialist in environmental design with a PhD from the University of Cambridge. She has extensive experience working on new and existing country houses and estates, listed and period buildings, new buildings within sensitive historic settings, and urban residential development, across the UK in both rural and urban locations. Gail has recently undertaken Certified Passivhaus Designer training and is the sustainability lead within ADAM Architecture.
Sanjana Alluri – Junior Urban Designer, MA
Sanjana joined the practice in 2019 after graduating from the University of Manchester. Formerly from a background of modern architecture, she has developed an understanding and admiration for traditional urban design within the practice over the past year. She has gained the experience on macroplanning aspects of speculative housing projects, namely in Chichester and Nansledan, taking a particular interest in connectivity and space planning. She is passionate about sustainable urban planning and aspires to pursue further specialisation in this direction.
Eve Zeltina – Architect
Eve’s primary interest is historic building conservation. Working for ADAM, where traditional buildings are not only restored but also built, has helped Eve to take her skills and understanding of our built heritage to the next level. Designing a new traditional element has enabled her to appreciate the construction issues and design challenges encountered by architects whose work she helps to restore. A licenced architect in the UK, she is pursuing a ‘Conservation Architect’ qualification. She is currently an integral part of one of the largest Grade 1 listed refurbishment projects in the UK.
By Diana Yu, May 2021
