Lavina Liburd, principal of TigerQi Architecture, a British Virgin Islands and St. Kitts-Nevis based architectural firm, has been featured in the Royal Institute Of British Architects (RIBA) publication “100 Women: Architects in Practice”. This publication celebrates the contribution by women to the built environment and is a rich, diverse, and fascinating survey of exceptional women architects from around the world.
The publication features three of Lavina’s projects:
Bayhouse Villa, Crook Bay, Virgin Gorda. The design is a fusion of classic Caribbean architecture and contemporary tropical design. Traditional louvred windows provide natural ventilation and shade, while rooftop louvres promote passive cooling, reducing the reliance on air-conditioning. This project was undertaken while Lavina was a Project Architect at OBMI International.
The remodel of Brandywine Estate Restaurant, Brandywine Bay, Tortola. The design covered the open terrace and added protected seating. The parabolic plan of the terrace did not lend itself to a traditional roof shape. This inspired a non-traditional approach based on organic forms found in nature with an asymmetrical, leaf-shaped roof structure, which echoes the floor plan of the terrace.
The Eslyn Henley Richiez Learning Centre, John’s Hole, Tortola – an all-age special educational needs (SEN) school in the BVI. The building will include sensory and therapy rooms, as well as indoor and outdoor trampolines for rebound therapy, outdoor classrooms, and hoists to aid in transferring non-ambulatory students.
“I extremely honoured to be one of a hundred women architects from around the world to be featured in this groundbreaking book,” said Lavina. “There are many exceptional and talented architects included in this publication and its humbling to join them.”
Lavina, a native of St Kitts and Nevis, has been living in the British Virgin Islands since 2006 and established TigerQi Architecture in 2013.
In her two decades of practice, she has worked with mid-size and large firms on projects ranging from transportation and justice, to luxury residential and commercial. Her work has been recognized by the International Property Awards in 2018-19 and 2019-20.
Lavina practices a Critical Regionalist design approach which embraces the simplicity and minimalism of Modernism, but which respects and relates to the cultures, built- environment traditions and climate of the Caribbean.
To find out more about her work visit: https://www.tigerqiarchitecture.com
“100 Women: Architects in Practice” – Celebrating 100 Women in architecture
Over the past decade, awareness of the need for gender balance in architecture has gained traction. Within the profession, women remain underrepresented, underpromoted and underpaid. In this latest publication from RIBA, women’s contribution to the built environment is rightly acknowledged and celebrated. 100 Women: Architects in Practice is a rich, diverse, and fascinating survey of exceptional women architects from around the world.
Geographically balanced to feature architects across six continents from no less than 79 countries, from Argentina to Zimbabwe and everywhere in between. The book explores “the different worlds, different forms of architecture and the place-sensitive approaches” each architect has taken to fulfil their vision through a series of insightful profiles and inspiring imagery.
Multiple award winner and leading industry voice Professor Harriet Harriss, together with senior academics and writers Naomi House and Monika Parrinder and multi-award-winning architecture journalist and editor of Dezeen Tom Ravenscroft, showcase the largely overlooked stories of 100 women currently making their mark in the architectural world.
Featuring a foreword by Alison Brooks, this highly anticipated book celebrates the most influential architects of our day. Among them are winners of the RIBA Royal Gold Medal and many other international awards, including Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects, Francine Houben of Mecanoo, Liz Diller, Farshid Moussavi, Anna Herringer, Momoyo Kaijima, Mariam Issoufou Kamara and Yasmeen Lari. The introduction identifies areas of common focus that seem to point a way forward: “practice innovation; care and connection; unpredictable participation; future place-making; equity.”
The book shines a spotlight on leading practitioners from all across the globe. Each has the knowledge and talent to be a household name. This publication aims to play a small part in increasing their visibility by giving their contributions due recognition.
100 Women is a must-have book for design students and professionals, serving as a flagship reference and inspirational collection for everyone whether interested in the field of architecture, or in gender equity across all professions and disciplines.
100 Women can be purchased from RIBA Books: https://www.ribabooks.com.
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