In celebration of Women’s History Month, HD is taking the opportunity to shine a spotlight on the many inspiring women who elevate the hospitality world and beyond with their talent, drive, and ability to defy convention. Here, we catch up with three visionaries about what keeps them passionate about their field, the women who motivate them, and proud moments.
Deborah Berke
Founder, Deborah Berke Partners
Photo by Winnie Au
What is your earliest design memory?
When I was in my early teens, I would walk around my neighborhood and try to figure out the plans of the different houses I saw from their façades. I loved getting glimpses inside and imaging the lives behind those walls and windows. It wasn’t voyeuristic, but more about understanding the relationship between the design and the lives of the people inside.
What keeps you passionate about the job?
Architecture is an increasingly complex field, and it’s being asked to address more and more complex realities. That’s what I love about it. To be a good architect, you have to commit to a life of learning and curiosity.
What’s your dream project?
We’re lucky to get to design all kinds of things: houses, university buildings, hotels, art and cultural centers. One thing we’ve never done—that I would love to do—is design a contemplative space. I’m not a religious person, but I think we could all use a bit more mindfulness and reflection.
What inspires you?
This might sound clichéd, but my students inspire me [Berke is the dean of the Yale School of Architecture]. That is why I’ve always balanced practice with being an educator, and now a dean. I believe in wisdom and experience, but I also believe in the enthusiasm and passion of youth. There’s real power in that.
21c Museum Hotels’ downtown Chicago outpost opened last year
What woman do you want to elevate in the industry that we should know about?
Deanna Van Buren, the founder of Designing Justice + Designing Spaces. She designs community spaces that address the root causes of mass incarceration. She’s a visionary and a powerhouse.
What advice would you give to your younger self as you embarked on your career?
Work hard and be persistent, but also be patient. Architecture is a long game. And have as much fun as you can along the way.
What’s your proudest recent accomplishment?
I’m very proud of the work we’re doing at Yale to make architectural education more accessible; and building a more diverse and inclusive student body and faculty.
If you weren’t an architect, what would you be doing?
That’s a tough question because all I’ve ever wanted to be is an architect. I have a lot of friends who are writers or artists, so I imagine I’d still be in a creative field. We’ll see in the next life.
Cheryl S. Durst
Executive vice president and CEO, IIDA
Photo by Ryan McDonald
What keeps you passionate about the job?
I have a strong sense of design’s relevance to our common future. Design is inherently an act of optimism, and as we lean into challenging times with the hope of effecting change we can little afford to not be optimistic about our collective future. It’s clear that designers and design thinking will remain vitally impactful, leading the charge on changes to healthcare, workplace, institutions, education, and of course the home. To borrow an idea from Jules Feiffer: ‘Design is important, because chaos is so hard.’
What inspires you?
Humanity. Design. Storytelling.
The human capacity for creativity and improvement and the inclusion that it represents. Design illuminates disparity and helps close the gaps—from healthcare and hospitality to public space and urban planning. Designers are amazing at responding to change and their ability to unpack what is essential in any issue lends itself to an adaptability that will forever inspire me.
Storytelling is another unique human ability. To communicate and educate through narrative, legend and lore, and make seemingly incomprehensible aspects of life more relatable through a personal chronicle and the act of sharing.
What woman do you want to elevate in the industry that we should know?
I’d be remiss to give just one. Frankly, I want to uplift any designer who has felt that they are the “only one,” whether that is the only woman in a room full of men, the only person of color in a studio with no color, or only interior designer in a room full of architects. Community empowers us, and my focus is on fostering that community.
IIDA’s Chicago headquarters, designed by Gensler
What advice would you give to your younger self as you embarked on your career?
My mother, Dorotha Stubblefield, said it best: ‘Plan for the best. Anticipate the worst. Capitalize on what comes.’ At a young age, my mother equipped me with this notion, which is really about that mixture of being an optimist about what’s ahead, a realist about what you’re dealing with right now, and always making the best of whatever comes your way. I’ve always been quite optimistic by nature; for the world of work, however, I would advise young Cheryl to value pragmatism: ‘Whatever challenges you face, the outcome is in your hands.’
What’s your proudest recent accomplishment?
Accomplishments have taken a surprising and irregular form over the past 12 months. Significance has become a thing of deep personal relevance—some of my latest personal accomplishments include cultivating creative moments in my day by getting lost in art, books, music, and spending time outside in nature. I’m also on the Boards of Trustees for two entities: Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) and the New York School of Interior Design (NYSID). Most recently, with both, I’m working on singularly important efforts around equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). Museums and higher education are deeply invested with the public trust, and I’m honored to help lead EDI strategies for both institutions.
If you weren’t in your current career, what would you be doing?
I’m an insatiable reader, so possibly I would be a book editor or writer. That said, when I was a child I dreamed of being a librarian, or an astronaut. I love books and space travel. I grew up during the ’60s when there was both a glamour and an urgency about going to the moon—And surely once the moon was colonized, it would need a library and a librarian!
Pallavi Dean
Founder and creative director, Roar
What’s your earliest design memory? What was the moment you knew you wanted to be a designer?
When I was 15, I remember messing about on a software called Corel, drawing on my new desktop computer at home. I was copying the image of a Dalmatian puppy from a book onto the screen when my sister walked in and said, ‘Did you just draw that by eye?’ That’s when I knew I had to do something related to design.
What keeps you passionate about the job?
I love being hands-on and after eight years of running the practice, I can proudly say I still do what any other designer on the team does. I’ve been told by business coaches that I shouldn’t be working in the business but rather on the business. I tried that for a few months and absolutely hated it. I love everything about the design process and love being involved in all the projects in the studio.
What’s your dream project?
I’m working on it right now. Our first ever prayer space—a mosque in a residential community in Dubai. I’ve always been fascinated with how people can connect spiritually to an architectural space and now I can be a small part of this experience.
What inspires you?
Anything and everything. Designers are curious beings, people that can never switch off inspiration. I think of myself as an antennae—ever ready to tune into the inspiration from a book I’m reading, a place I’ve visited, a walk in nature, or quite simply listening to my own stillness post-mediation.
Roar recently completed Drop Coffee’s second location in Dubai
What woman do you want to elevate in the industry that we should know?
I adore all 16 women I work with in the studio equally, but if you force me to shine the spotlight on just one, it’s Nikita Chellani—a young designer with a master’s degree in both graphics and interior design. I would also like to mention my mentor and former boss Isabel Pintado, who has always played a pivotal role in my professional and personal life.
What advice would you give to your younger self as you embarked on your career?
Be so good that they can’t ignore you! It’s my mantra. Stop focusing on what you don’t have and, instead, focus and develop what you do have. I would also tell myself to invest in me—talent can only take one so far, emotional intelligence and empathy win the long race.
What’s your proudest recent accomplishment?
One space I love going back to is Shababeek, a restaurant in Sharjah. We nailed the fusion of influences from contemporary Lebanon, Art Deco Paris, and Ancient Rome, all with a subtle Emirati twist.
If you weren’t a designer, what would you be doing?
I’d be a psychologist. At Roar, we put a strong emphasis on wellbeing, and approach design from a place of empathy and of nurturing the client. We work with a psychologist on all our projects’ briefings to help define the clients’ needs and create the most effective spaces for them.
Click here for more Women’s History Month coverage by HD.
