Meet Monica, Award Winning Architect
Monica Ponce de León is an architect, educator, and Dean of the Princeton University School of Architecture. She is A National Design Award winner and principal of MPdL Studio.
Share with us your background, your roots.
I was born in Caracas, Venezuela and immigrated to the United States with my family when I was a teenager. Living in Miami and then going to school in Boston also had a great impact on me because of the diverse Latinx communities in both cities. My husband is Chicano from Los Angeles, which is given me another perspective. I have been blessed to have roots that spread wide.
Who has been your inspiration?
Paying careful attention to technological efficiency, the Macallen Building is a 350,000sf mixed-use project which is a fully-integrated systems building whose environmentally-focused features made it the first LEED Gold certified multi-family housing building in Boston. The Macallen building was awarded the prestigious AIA Housing Award for Multifamily Housing and was named one of the Top Ten Green Projects in 2008 by AIA/COTE.
Venezuela has a significant legacy of extraordinary architecture and a great education system. One of the great influences in my life was to spend time visiting the works of Carlos Raul Villanueva as a child. He was a practicing architect and the Dean of the School of Architecture in the Universidad Central de Venezuela. I have modeled my practice and my passion for education after him. There have also been very important women in my life. My mother never went to college. She worked as a secretary staring when she was 15 years of age and she saved enough money to open a business which she ran with my father. I get my work ethic from her. I always wanted to be an architect, and everyone always said “that is a man’s profession.” My best friend’s mom is an architect and she was proof that women could also be architects.
Why would you say architecture is so special and important?
Architecture is everywhere from the spaces that we live and work in, to the buildings that serve the public, to the monuments that symbolize our values. Architecture represent us as a culture and enables our daily life. Howwe build is also critical today because buildings have a huge environmental impact.
What have been some of the top challenges you’ve faced during your career?
Architecture is a profession where only 32% are women and only 1% is Latino (of any gender). There is discrimination at all levels. I have my own architecture practice and I am also the dean of the Princeton School of Architecture and before that I was the dean of the School of Architecture at the University of Michigan. It is very common for deans of a school of architecture to also be a practicing architects but it is rare for a Latinx woman. I am excited that I get to do both.
“I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE AN ARCHITECT, AND EVERYONE ALWAYS SAID “THAT IS A MAN’S PROFESSION.” MY BEST FRIEND’S MOM IS AN ARCHITECT AND SHE WAS PROOF THAT WOMEN COULD ALSO BE ARCHITECTS.”
Located at the heart of a community where the average annual income is under $40,000 per family, the Pompano Beach Library, Cultural Arts & Media Center was developed to provide broad access to knowledge, technology, and 21st century tools for creativity. Achieved LEED Gold Certification. Selected Awards: AIA FL Merit Award of Excellence for NewWork, AIA Miami Design Award.
What role do you see Latinx playing in the future of architecture?
Most building’s today are built by people that do not represent the diverse communities of the US. I hope that Latinx who commission architects to build buildings, hire Latinx architects to ensure that multiple voices are represented at the table. If Latinx hired only Latinx architects, it will make the Latinx community more visible and stronger.
What challenges do you see for your industry?
I don’t see how the architecture industry can grow if it does not support the success of multiple groups of people in leadership positions.
Can you share with us one of the proudest moments in your career?
Receiving the National Design Award by the Smithsonian in 2008 was very meaningful to me. I was the first Latinx to receive the award in Architecture.
What are you working on right now and what are some dreams you’re still looking forward to achieving?
The Helios House is a gas station in Los Angeles, located on Olympic Boulevard. It is designed as a green station with special features and is considered to be the "station of the future." It is the first gas station in the United States to be submitted for LEED certification. The gas station was designed by Office dA (Principal architects Monica Ponce de Leon and Nader Tehrani) in Boston and Johnston Marklee Architects in Los Angeles.
I have several projects under construction, but one of my favorites is a house that I designed for aging in place. The house not only accommodates people as they get older and loose mobility, but also, is designed so that it can be easily transformed into a different kind of house. One big problem in society is that homes are designed for a certain family size. So when the kids grow up the empty nesters are ether stuck with a large house or have to move and downsize. This house is laid out so it can be easily transformed into a house with smaller rental apartments, or with a separate workspace, or so that the kids and their new family can come back to live with you with some independence. I am excited because it functions like a regular single-family home, but it is set up so that it can transform without remodeling. I like design that responds to our lives today.
Since you are asking about dreams: One of my dreams would be to design a National Museum of Latinx History and Culture to be built in the National Mall in Washington. Or to design a Presidential Library for the first Latinx or the first Woman President.