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In Part 1 of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Lillian Tay discusses on a wide range of issues regarding women architects, starting out in the beginning, the role of women in general, whether there is discrimination in architecture and architectural practice in reality.

Bio: Ar. Lillian Tay is the Vice President of Veritas Design Group, est. 1987. She was trained at Princeton University and worked at Kohn Pederson Fox in New York. Lillian returned to Kuala Lumpur in 1991. At Veritas Design Group, she provides the design direction  and was leading numerous award-winning projects. Lillian contributes to society as the Malaysian Architecture Institute (PAM) President from 2019-2020 and sits on the Board of Architects, Malaysia (LAM). Recently, she won the PAM Gold Medal for Design Excellence.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image from https://theveritasdesigngroup.com/

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A Teaser introduction on a conversation with Ar. Lillian Tay in the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles. (Part 1 & 2 - coming soon.)

Bio: Ar. Lillian Tay is the Vice President of Veritas Design Group, est. 1987. She was trained at Princeton University and worked at Kohn Pederson Fox in New York. Lillian returned to Kuala Lumpur in 1991. At Veritas Design Group, she provides the design direction  and was leading numerous award-winning projects. Lillian contributes to society as the Malaysian Architecture Institute (PAM) President from 2019-2020 and sits on the Board of Architects, Malaysia (LAM). Recently, she won the PAM Gold Medal for Design Excellence.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image from https://theveritasdesigngroup.com/

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The Concluding Part [Part 2] of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim discusses on how younger women architects need to find that balance in their profession, flexibility arrangements with your boss, having empathy with your staff, the importance of "me time" and resetting your mind over the weekend, the importance of learning from one another in an office and the construction industry and learning how to market oneself with your various skills.

Bio: Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim, Managing Director of Almaz Architect Sdn Bhd.  Throughout her 41 years of experience in the industry, she has been involved in over 250 design works in Malaysia winning awards. She was the convenor of Singgah KL, a Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) event in 2025 promoting the architecture profession. More details at the website: https://www.almazarchitect.com/

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar.  Almaz Salma

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Commentary on the article entitled "Being an architect isn't worth it" says commenter published on 15 August 2025.

Naziaty Mohd Yaacob argued that the connection to bridging the gap between architecture education and practice is to breakdown what exactly is the learning to acquire skills and knowledge to be an architect when it comes to 'design' as the student needs to get this part right, which is identifying and solving the 'design problem'.

Link to the Dezeen.com article

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob.

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In Part 1 of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim discusses on networking at top management level, advice when fresh graduates started out in employment, stepping out of the comfort zone and keep on challenging oneself and even marketing for oneself, the importance of the right mentor, and how acquiring knowledge and keep on doing so helps you to gain confidence, amongst other issues of managing an office.

Bio: Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim, Managing Director of Almaz Architect Sdn Bhd.  Throughout her 41 years of experience in the industry, she has been involved in over 250 design works in Malaysia winning awards. She was the convenor of Singgah KL, a Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) event in 2025 promoting the architecture profession. More details at the website: https://www.almazarchitect.com/

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar.  Almaz Salma

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Do subscribe for premium content and special features which will help to support and sustain Talk Architecture podcast on a more in-depth explanation on design thesis and processes. These special commentaries and ‘how to’ explanations are valuable insights and knowledge not found elsewhere! 

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A Teaser introduction on a conversation with Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim in the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles. (Part 1 & 2 - coming soon.)

Bio: Ar. Almaz Salma Abdul Rahim, Managing Director of Almaz Architect Sdn Bhd.  Throughout her 41 years of experience in the industry, she has been involved in over 250 design works in Malaysia winning awards. She was the convenor of Singgah KL, a Pertubuhan Arkitek Malaysia (PAM) event in 2025 promoting the architecture profession.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar.  Almaz Salma

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Do subscribe for premium content and special features which will help to support and sustain Talk Architecture podcast on a more in-depth explanation on design thesis and processes. These special commentaries and ‘how to’ explanations are valuable insights and knowledge not found elsewhere! 

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The Concluding Part [Part 2] of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Cheryl Quan discusses about the issues women architects face when "maternity leave" happens amongst other issues, the role of the institutions such as PAM, and more detailed deliberations on the Malaysian Architecture Week (MAW) and the awareness needed to get the public to know about the architect's role and function in society.

Bio: Ar. Cheryl Quan is the principal of Cheryl Quan Architect and partner in OTCQ architects, a practice focused on responsive, community-driven, and environmentally conscious design. She was named one of the 40 Under 40 Emerging Architects in 2023. Known for her material sensitivity and a willingness to embrace experimental approaches, Cheryl explores how innovative use of materials can shape tactile, immersive spatial experiences.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar. Cheryl Quan

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In Part 1 of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Cheryl Quan discusses about her experiences and challenges in her practice and recounted how she struggled in the beginning when there were clear gender-based biases she was up against. As one of the main curator of the recent exhibition and talks in conjunction with the Malaysian Architecture Week (MAW), after a seven year sabbatical, she found confidence again to be part of the architecture fraternity and contribute to the development with her contemporaries, moving forward.

Tune in to find out more and do give your opinion / feedback on what you think on this matter.

Bio: Ar. Cheryl Quan is the principal of Cheryl Quan Architect and partner in OTCQ architects, a practice focused on responsive, community-driven, and environmentally conscious design. She was named one of the 40 Under 40 Emerging Architects in 2023. Known for her material sensitivity and a willingness to embrace experimental approaches, Cheryl explores how innovative use of materials can shape tactile, immersive spatial experiences.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar. Cheryl Quan

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Do subscribe for premium content and special features which will help to support and sustain Talk Architecture podcast on a more in-depth explanation on design thesis and processes. These special commentaries and ‘how to’ explanations are valuable insights and knowledge not found elsewhere! 

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A Teaser introduction on a conversation with Ar Cheryl Quan in the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles. (Part 1 & 2 - coming soon.)

Bio: Ar. Cheryl Quan is the principal of Cheryl Quan Architect and partner in OTCQ architects, a practice focused on responsive, community-driven, and environmentally conscious design. She was named one of the 40 Under 40 Emerging Architects in 2023. Known for her material sensitivity and a willingness to embrace experimental approaches, Cheryl explores how innovative use of materials can shape tactile, immersive spatial experiences.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar. Cheryl Quan

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Do subscribe for premium content and special features which will help to support and sustain Talk Architecture podcast on a more in-depth explanation on design thesis and processes. These special commentaries and ‘how to’ explanations are valuable insights and knowledge not found elsewhere! 

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The Concluding Part [Part 2] of the series on Women Architects in Leadership Roles, Ar. Aisyah Razin explained on how it is important to "always be curious, consistent and grounded" for women architects to negotiate the building industry. The content is more on how you need to manage yourself with other people.

More podcasts on this topic coming soon with interviews lined-up.

© 2025 Talk Architecture, Author: Naziaty Mohd Yaacob. Image contributed by Ar. Aisyah Razin

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Do subscribe for premium content and special features which will help to support and sustain Talk Architecture podcast on a more in-depth explanation on design thesis and processes. These special commentaries and ‘how to’ explanations are valuable insights and knowledge not found elsewhere!