AIANYS Members Help Debut Architect Barbie at the AIA Convention!
The 2011 AIA National Convention featured the official launch of Barbie I Can Be… Architect. Mattel worked with two AIANYS members, Kelly Hayes McAlonie, AIA, President-Elect, AIANYS and Interim Assistant Vice President of Capital Planning Group at the University at Buffalo, and Despina Stratigakos, Assoc. AIA and Professor of Architectural History at UB, to create the latest in a series of career-focused Barbies. Hayes McAlonie and Stratigakos sent a letter to Mattel last spring advocating for an architect-themed doll. Mattel responded positively and after months of work the idea has been fully realized.
As part of the launch, Hayes McAlonie and Stratigakos led workshops at Mattel’s specially-designed Barbie booth on the Expo floor over three days at the convention. More than 400 girls from local schools, Girl Scout troops and Boys & Girls Clubs took part in a hands-on workshop that included an overview of famous female architects and their work. The girls also got their chance to design their own dream house. The materials used during the workshop are now available online at www.aianys.org. Please download these free materials and help girls and boys in your area express their creativity and learn more about architecture!
“The Architect Barbie project embodies many of the issues that I have worked on throughout my career, specifically providing opportunities to teach children about the importance of design in the built environment and promoting women in the architectural profession. I am personally touched by the positive response that the project has received from the architectural community,” said Kelly Hayes McAlonie, AIA.
“For me, Architect Barbie is a tool to interest little girls in the world of architecture. Kelly and I had for years been developing ways to reach out to both girls and boys through offering architectural programs in public schools. By working with Mattel to create the doll, we hoped to expand that audience by tapping into the power of a cultural icon. The fact is that Barbie appeals to little girls like no other toy. They are proprietary about her—they know the doll is just for them. And whatever Barbie does, she brings it into the sphere of women. We hope that these little girls will come to think of hard hats and construction sites as just another part of their everyday world,” said Despina Stratigakos, Assoc. AIA.
Mattel worked with AIA to not only officially unveil the Architect Barbie at the AIA National Convention, but also make the doll available for purchase in the Convention Book Store. You can pre-order the doll at: http://shop.mattel.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=architect&origkw=architect&sr=1
(will ship in August). The doll will be available in stores nationwide starting in August.
“The AIA has been a tremendous partner in this project. By hosting the launch at the AIA National Convention, the AIA was able to facilitate an interesting conversation on the role of women in architecture with the general public and the architectural community. The workshops were the highlight of this ‘conversation.’ 400 little girls from New Orleans learned what architects do, the history of women in the architectural profession and gained a basic understanding of the design process. Countless people approached me to express their gratitude for the project and to say that the workshops crystallized for them the reason for the project in the first place. Providing little girls with a vehicle to imagine that they too can be an architect- that is everything to me! We couldn’t have done that without the help of the AIA and our many volunteer members,” said Hayes McAlonie.
Now you have a chance to design Barbie’s Dream House! AIA National has paired with Mattel to bring you the Architect Barbie Dream House Design Competition. Entries are due by June 27, 2011. Five finalists will be chosen and announced on July 12, 2011. The public will then vote and the final winner will be announced on August 2, 2011. For more information on the competition, go to http://www.aia.org/practicing/AIAB089214?dvid=&recspec=AIAB089214.
Build Barbie's House
How to Conduct the Workshop
Workshop Materials
Drafting Paper
House Exercise
Workshop Sample
