To find balance in life, Thompson sets a strict boundary between home and studio during the standard workweek. “I like to start early; the days tend to be quite long and intense, but I avoid working at night or on weekends,” she commented. On the other hand, she sets “a loose boundary between architecture and life”. Thompson elaborated: “I find architecture can be revealed, inspired by so many things outside of it – everyday life with family, colleagues, and friends, food, travel, reading, art, music, etc.”
Female role models were scarce when she was still an architecture student at the RMIT University in Melbourne. “The upside of this, and key reason for starting my own practice, was to be able to define the way of being an architect that was distinct from existing practices. I wondered how to be heard, as a voice to be reckoned with; how to combine leadership and family? It had a price. Being present in the industry meant being less present at home. No, you can’t have it all,” she admitted.
On bias in the industry, Thompson said: “The gender card is a double-edged sword; it contains built-in assumptions. I am cautious about claims that as a woman architect, I will do certain types of buildings. Nonetheless, I increasingly acknowledge that my own experience as a woman has enabled me to bring different insight to design.”
NATHALIE DE VRIES
