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Redesigning
the glass ceiling
Sri
Lanka leads the field for women in architecture
By
Nizla Naizer
In the male dominated construction industry,
it’s very rare to find women architects playing
a large role in many countries abroad. But Sri Lanka
has paved the way for women to embrace the science and
art of architecture, says Dean of the Architecture Department
at the Moratuwa University, Professor Chitra Weddikkara.
“Two thirds of the new batch of architects is women
in Sri Lanka.”
Speaking to The Bottom Line Prof. Weddikkara who was
also the first woman Dean of Architecture to be appointed
said, “Architecture is one of the most important
elements in our world. It shapes the built environment
and it designs the surroundings in such a way that it
becomes a habitable place.”
Women and Architecture
She explained that architecture is not a common profession
when she decided to take it up in 1968. “Women
didn’t participate in architecture too much then.
But I like challenges and I never looked back.”
This dynamic lady, now the Vice President of the Sri
Lanka Institute of Architects says that her class at
the University of Moratuwa had only 6 women. “Now
we have a female student population of 60 in a batch
of 100 at both Moratuwa University and the City School
of Architecture in Colombo.”
Graduating in 1971, Prof. Weddikkara had to choose a
commonwealth country to continue her studies and obtain
her MSc and Royal Institute of British Architects –Modern
qualification at the same time. “My husband and
I had graduated together from the University of Moratuwa
and we decided to study at the University of Curtin
in Australia together.” She was shocked to find
out that there was only one other woman in her batch
and she dropped out leaving Prof. Weddikkara the only
woman architect to graduate from her batch.
“In many parts of the world, architecture is not
considered to be an appropriate job for a woman because
you have to deal with construction workers and be on
site. In the western world, and in Australia in particular,
the labour force was a rough group of people and we
were always instructed to communicate only with the
foreman.”
However, in our part of the world, in Asia especially,
the mentality is different, and Sri Lanka is one of
the rare countries where women are treated on an equal
footing. “We do not have gender bias here. When
I walk into the institute of architects, I am an architect
first and a woman later. This absence of discrimination
is what is helping the profession grow among the young
women of our country.”
After working in lucrative positions in Australia till
1980, the husband and wife duo moved to the United States
for three years. “We were moving back to Australia
in 1983 when we stopped over in Sri Lanka. My family
had got us an assignment to do a hotel project in Negombo
and we never looked back.” She then joined the
Department of Architecture as a part-time lecturer but
loved the profession and stayed with it, moving on to
become the Dean of Architecture in 2005.
Balance the dream
In another first, Prof. Weddikkara was the first
woman to graduate as a Quantity Surveyor from the State
of New South Wales, Australia in the 1980s. “As
architects and designers you tend to forget the budget
elements of your client. We are dreamers and we tend
to forget the cost of dreaming. So I wanted to study
quantity surveying to balance these dreams.”
When there was an opening for the Head of the Department
of Building Economics at the University of Moratuwa,
Prof. Weddikkara was the ideal choice and she took over
the reigns in 1987. “I then wanted our quantity
surveyors to understand the work and the vision an architect
has when he starts on a project instead of just stating
that it’s impossible because of the cost.”
With this intention in mind she started the ‘Design
Appreciation’ course for the students of quantity
surveying. “I wanted to bridge the gap by teaching
quantity surveyors the concept of architecture.”
The success of the course is a very personal achievement
to this dedicated architect. “They now understand
the mentality of the architect and they support the
architect’s vision without jeopardizing the budget.”
Lack of Sri Lankan impact
“Architecture in Sri Lanka has a glorious
past with structures like ‘Lovamahapaya’ as
far back as 2500 BC testament to our unique abilities.
In the older generations we have the inimitable Geoffery
Bawa who took our architecture to the world, but at
present, we do not have an impact or an identity in
architecture.”
She lamented that even though individually there are
great creations by Sri Lankan architects there isn’t
a Sri Lankan identity to display to the rest of the
world. “Of course, with the economy as it is, our
wings are clipped. But Sri Lanka is on the brink of
a large rehabilitation programme the likes of which
we haven’t seen before. And we as architects have
an extremely important role to play.”
‘Architect
2009’
“This year’s annual Architect trade exhibition
and conference has chosen a relevant theme, ‘Doing
more with less’,” she stated. “It’s
about making the most value addition to limited resources.
With the world going through sustainability, green buildings
and green labeling, this is a very apt seminar.”
She explained that even with the post-war rehabilitation,
it is important for architects to utilise the limited
resources the government has in its disposal to rebuild
the nation. “We have a responsibility to do more
with less at this point in time.” Professor Weddikkara
is an inspiring personality who made her way in a man’s
world to become a successful architect and academic
promoting the profession at a time when the world needs
more forward thinking professionals. “I do what
I love and it keeps me going,” she said. “And
the support of my family always helped me along the
way. Architecture in Sri Lanka has progressed throughout
the years, especially with the absence of gender bias
within the industry, but there is a lot more we can
do to shape the profession in the country.”
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