From the stunning Queen of Peace Monastery in Squamish Valley, to beautiful, small family homes, the visions of Squamish’s female architects have helped create some of our most striking (and award-winning) buildings.
Tanis Schulte is an architect, entrepreneur and mom of three children under four years old.
“When I was little I was intrigued with architecture. I was drawn to buildings and would make my mom drive me around neighbourhoods to look at cool houses,” she said.
Her mom was the one who suggested she go into architecture. And it’s a path she’s never wavered from.
At school, women were among the minority on her building technology diploma, and they still are, she said.
“Architecture is an old boys’ club. It’s very rare that you are not the minority, from offices to architectural conferences.”
Stepping out in front of the trades on a project can sometimes be daunting, she explained, not only because of the female factor but also because, as the architect, if there’s an error on site you’re the one they’ll blame. But once they realise you’ve swung a few hammers before and know what you’re doing, things dissipate, she said.
Schulte founded Thuja Design Studio in 2010 and moved to Squamish from Vancouver Island in 2014. Until recently she worked mostly on single-family homes, but has a number of local projects in the works.
“It’s a great profession. It’s artistic but technical… one day you’re sketching, the next day you’re drafting intricate details. It’s just so variable.”
Jayne Song, lead architect at AKA Architecture and Design, agreed.
“A lot of people are interested in architecture because they think it’s the perfect combination of creativity, art, engineering and math, so it’s technical as well as artistic.”
In reality though, it’s much more than that, she explained, especially in a town such as Squamish that’s experiencing transition.
“I think there’s a lot of trepidation about how rapid the growth has been… but we’re also hoping there will be some excitement about what the possibilities are. Because there is a lot of potential.”
It’s an interesting challenge that requires creative solutions, she said. One that she and her team feel ready for.
There’s also an element of balancing new developments with Squamish’s history and industrial past.
“We definitely don’t want to lose that,” she said. “We want to create buildings that are connected to our place here.”
Song said she feels fortunate not to have experienced any of the gender-based prejudice that others have. Though she does feel that, as a profession, they could be a little more flexible.
“I feel they could do more to support women in architecture because taking time off is an issue. I think it goes back to it being a very challenging career choice. It’s hard to do the jobs I’m doing part-time, but that’s a choice I’ve made to operate on the scale that we are and to work on the projects that we do.”
For Schulte, owning her own business allows her the flexibility she needs.
“Having children and owning your own business is super challenging… I don’t want to be stuck working in someone else’s office. I want my own hours. I want to be flexible. I want to nurse my child or read a book if needed. But it’s hard because, when you’re doing your own thing, you have to put that much more effort into making it a successful business. It takes a lot of time and it’s demanding.”
In the past she’s sometimes had to get up in the middle of the night to work on projects while her children slept.
“The key to being successful with your kids and being an entrepreneur is recognising your limits. You can only take on what you can do.”
If anything were possible, Schulte would like to see Squamish’s school buildings modernised.
“I think our institutions are very out-dated… We should be looking at beautiful spaces for our kids that inspire them.”
There’s also an issue of affordable housing, they agreed, and parking too, added Song, whose most recent project, The Main (a new housing development at Main Street and Cleveland Avenue), will offer new condos downtown.
For an architect, explained Song, it’s an exciting time for Squamish – we’re a community on the cusp of agreeing on a vision for the future (the Official Community Plan). It’s something she strongly believes will help shape buildings to come.
