Series:

Women Architects in Southern California

Topic:

Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Design

Women's Issues

Biographical Note:

An award winning designer for family housing and first tenure track female faculty in architecture at USC

Interviewer:

Kennard, Gail

Interviewee:

Dubnoff, Ena

Place Conducted:

The interview was conducted using the Zoom video conferencing platform.

Supporting Documents:

Records relating to the interview are located in the office of the UCLA Library’s Center for Oral History Research.

Interviewer Background and Preparation:

The interview was conducted by Gail Kennard, an architectural practitioner for more than thirty years in the Los Angeles area. The interviewer prepared for the interview by attending “The Diversity of Modernism,” sponsored by Docomono L.A. Chapter, October 12, 2019, where Margot Siegel gave a presentation about her work; reading “Unforgetting Women Architects: From the Pritzker to Wikipedia” by Despina Stratigakos in Places Journal, 2013, reprinted April 2016

Processing of Interview:

The interviewer prepared a timed log of the audio recording of the interview. The interviewee was given the opportunity to review the log in order to supply missing or misspelled names and to verify the accuracy of the content but made no changes.

Length:

2.5 hrs

Language:

English

Copyright:

Regents of the University of California, UCLA Library.

Audio:

Series Statement:

The Women Architects in Southern California series documents the impacts made by women in architecture on the built environment of Southern California from the nineteen fifties and on. Overcoming gender bias in a male-dominated profession, the selected women represent a cohort of architects, educated in schools of architecture in the post-World War II era, who contributed most significantly to both award-recognized public and private built work and to the historic preservation of landmark buildings.

Note:

Dubnoff and Kennard

Early life and family—Architecture school—Gender dynamics in architecture—Post-graduation studies, travels—Work experience—Mentorship—USC

Work after college—Move to East coast—Graduate school—Travels after graduate school—Work in LA-- ONE Company—Willowbrook project—Teaching and illness—Work with Sussman/Prejza-- SCI-Arc—Computer drafting—Pride in career

Licensing—Deborah Sussman—One Company—Collaborations—USC and women students—Wikipedia entry—Woodturning—Advice to women today—Pride in work