12 Newsletter

IAWA NEWSLETTER International Archive of Women in Architecture Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Fall 2000 No. 12 New Acquisitions chitecture in 1952. Although women Women Architects in Romania achieved equal rights in the 1923 Romania, a nation located in constitution (this granted them the southeastern Europe, lies between right to vote in local elections only), Bulgaria, to the south, and the few entered the architectural profes- Ukraine and Moldavia to the north. sion. One of the pioneers was Lucia Romanians speak a Latin tongue in- Dumbrâveanu (b. 1898) who stud- troduced in the time of the Roman ied at the École des Beaux Arts in (1) Virginia Haret, Prince Dimitrie Cantemir Paris in the early 1920’s. In Paris, she Emperor Trajan, who conquered College (1926), Bucharest. these lands, and made way for a met her countryman and future hus- large number of Roman immigrants the Romanian Architects’ Society. It band Horia Creangâ (1892-1943) and to settle in the province, called Dacia. became a state institution within the in 1927, returned with him to During the Middle Ages, modern- School of Fine Arts of Bucharest in Bucharest to start a busy practice. day Romania consisted of three prin- the late 1890’s and an independent Although Lucia collaborated with cipalities: Wallachia,Moldavia,and Higher School of Architecture in 1904. her husband on such Bucharest land- Transylvania. From the 15th Cen- The name of the institution changed marks as the ARO (Asigurarea tury, the rulers of Wallachia and several times–from Architecture Româneascnâ), a commission that Moldavia retained a measure of in- Academy in the 1930’s, to Faculty of they won by competition in 1929, her dependence by paying heavy trib- Architecture within the Polytechnic name was forgotten. Likewise, Vir- ute to the Ottoman Empire; of Bucharest during the 1940’s, to the ginia Maria Andreescu Haret (1894- Transylvania, on the other hand, was present “Ion Mincu” Institute of Ar- 1962) and Henriette Delavrancea- absorbed by the Austrian-Hungar- Gibory (1894-1987) made major con- ian Empire. Wallachia and Moldavia, tributions to the Modern movement united as one principality, Roma- in Romania although their names nia,(1859), continued to be under remain unknown today. Virginia Ottoman suzerainty. In 1877, Roma- Haret was the first woman to gradu- nia gained full independence only ate (1919) from the School of Archi- with the support of Russian troops. tecture in Bucharest. She continued Transylvania joined the principality her studies in Rome and returned to at the end of WWI. Romania allied Romania for a long and flourishing with Germany in WWII and surren- practice (figure 1). Henriette dered to Soviet troops in 1944. From Delavrancea-Gibory started her stud- 1944 until 1989, a communist-led gov- ies at the School of Architecture in ernment ruled the country, which 1913 (interrupted during WWI). and had become a satellite of the Soviet graduated in 1926 and, after a suc- Union. cessful practice, devoted her time Architectural education com- after WWII to historic preservation menced in the early 1890's, after Ro- and renovation. Among her many mania gained its independence in a (2) Henriette Delavrancea-Gibory, Cantuniar private houses and villas is the House (1937), Bucharest. private school under the authority of continued on pg. 2 Cantuniar house in Bucharest (fig- Maria Militza Sion ure 2). Maria Militza Sion worked We are grateful to architect for several design organizations in- Irene Patrulius (b. 1935), who do- cluding “Project Bucuresti” Design nated her research paper and sev- Institute. Her first job was in the eral slides of the work of these provincial town Galati (1961-66), sub- women architects. sequently, she returned to Bucharest. After WWII and until 1989, Sion designed many apartment the Romanian government banned buildings in Bucharest and co-de- private practice and forced architects signed four cultural centers in pro- to work in state-controlled design vincial towns: Buzau (1970), in Sibiu organizations. Documents from this (1972), Alba-Iulia (1974) and Calan period have been neglected, or de- (1975). For almost ten years (1978- stroyed. A younger generation of 86) Sion participated in the modern- architects, eager to develop their ization and redevelopment of the own private practices during the city of Miercurea Ciue in 1990’s, have not protected this archi- Transylvania. She designed apart- tectural legacy. Fortunately, four ment buildings, a hotel, and a large women recently donated samples of shopping area. She also co-designed their work to the IAWA. All four the Romanian Embassy in Sofia, Bul- graduated from “Ion Mincu” Insti- garia (1985-88). Militza Sion re- tute of Architecture: Maria Militza ceived the 1972 award of the Union Sion (b. 1938) in 1961; Doina Marilena of Romanian Architects for her cul- Ciocânea (b. 1951) in 1976; Georgeta tural center in Busau, and again in Gabrea (b. 1953) in 1978; and Ana 1973 for the cultural center in Sibiu. Uncu (b. 1954) in 1979. They all In 1986, the Union recognized her began their professional careers in housing neighborhood “1st May” in state organizations and established Bucharest and the following year, private offices in the 1990’s. she received the award for her work in Miercurea Ciue. (4) Maria Militza Sion In 1992, Militza Sion opened Orphanage (1997-8), Calarasi. View from a private office in partnership with courtyard (above) and plan (below) Marina Neagu Sadoveanu (b. 1946). Their first large project was the Holi- Calarasi, Romania. Orphans and day Inn Resort in Sinaia, which Sion abandoned children are a serious began in 1990 with a winning com- social problem in Romania and many petition entry sponsored by a local orphanages operate in dilapidated travel agency. The subsequent pro- buildings ill-suited to their needs. In gram, however, required a much contrast, the orphanage in Calarasi larger hotel with 4 star amenities offers a more sensitive program- including indoor and outdoor swim- matic response to this endemic prob- ming pools, tennis courts, exhibi- lem. This facility, whose construction and meeting rooms, a confer- tion was sponsored by a humanitar- ence hall, indoor and outdoor res- ian organization and financed by a taurants and bars, etc. Set in a pri- Swiss banker, provides separate vate park, Sion has described the rooms for groups of 8 children, be- recently completed hotel as “inte- tween 2 and 6 years old. Each room grated in the landscape-a mountain has areas for sleeping, eating, and plateau in the Prahova valley.” playing and a bathroom. The play (Figure 3) areas open to a covered terrace for outdoor games. The facility contains (3) Maria Militza Sion In 1997-98, Militza Sion de- Holiday Inn (1992-96), Sinaia signed and built an orphanage in a kindergarten also open to neigh- 2 borhood children, which integrate tional conference center, museums, the younger orphans into the social etc. Ciocãnea also designed admin- life of the community. The adminis- istrative buildings and workers’ tration occupies the attic floor, leav- housing for several provincial towns. ing the entire ground floor to the With privatization, Doina children. (Figure 4) Ciocãnea became the chief architect The office of Militza Sion built for “PREDA” (1990-94) and later in another orphanage in Turnu Severin, the firm “MACONZ International” Romania, private houses in Sinaia Ltd., designing mostly private resi- and Bucharest, and a number of of- dences. After obtaining a master’s fice buildings and apartments. Sion degree and license in Urban Design is also an artist and received the 1976 and Planning from the Institute of annual award for graphic art as well Architecture (1995), she established as the 1981 special award of the Jury her private practice. She continued for Graphic Art. She donated some her studies on environmental tech- of her sketches to the IAWA, in addi- niques at “Unesco-Cousteau” Uni- tion to drawings and photos of her versity in Bucharest and received a (6) Doina Ciocãnea, rural dwelling, 1996. buildings. A number of her sketches fellowship in 1996 to specialize in (plan and elevations) are within the Archive. public policy and ecology in Madrid, Spain. Doina Ciocãnea is presently cal Arhitectura. Gabrea began her practice in the “Metroul” enterprize Doina Marilena Ciocãnea involved in ecological studies for the town council of Bucharest and re- (1978-86), designing underground Doina Marilena Ciocãnea subway stations for the new metro worked for ten years (1976-87) in the cently completed the “Study of Eco- logical Urban Design for the lakes’ system of Bucharest and several Institute for Design and Construc- apartment buildings. Thereafter, she tion of Agricultural and Food Pro- shores of the River Colentina in Bucharest" (1996-98). (Figures 5 &6) joined “Project Bucuresti” Design duction Industries. Her storage fa- Institute (1986-94), collaborating with cilities for vegetables and fruits; fac- Venera Trisnevschi-Geta on such tories for canning them; wineries; Georgeta Gabrea large projects as the Bucharest Mu- slaughterhouses for chickens and Georgeta Gabrea graduated nicipal Library, the “Boema” Musi- rabbits; flour mills and bakeries, were from the “Ion Mincu” Institute of cal Theatre, and the sports complex built in many towns and villages Architecture in 1978. During her at the Country Club. In 1992, around the country. Subsequently, studies at “Ion Mincu”, she focused Georgeta Gabrea and Venera she became principle architect in the on the history of Romanian architec- Trisnevschi-Geta, with other archi- “Carpati", state-sponsored firm ture. In 1974, she studied the history tects and planners, formed “Capitel” (1987-90) for the construction of the of architecture at the International Ltd., offering architectural and ur- Romanian “House of the Republic,”– Center for Architectural Studies “An- ban design, land development, and later named the “People’s House”.

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