Ethel Charles

Ethel Mary Charles (25 Mar 1871– Apr 1962) was the first woman to be admitted to the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) in 1898.[1]

Ethel Charles and her sister Bessie Ada Charles were born in Calcutta, Bengal, India to Thomas Edmonton Charles and Ada Henrietta Charles. Both women were articled to Sir Ernest George and Peto, the architectural practice of Ernest George and Harold Peto. In 1893, they both attempted to continue their training by attending the Architectural Association School of Architecture but were refused entry. Ethel completed part of the course offered by the Bartlett School of Architecture,[2] receiving distinctions. Drawings in the RIBA Collection document her travels through England, France and Italy. After her apprenticeship with Ernest George, she became an assistant to Walter Cave, studying Gothic and domestic architecture. In June 1898, she passed the RIBA examinations for associate membership. RIBA President at the time, Professor George Aitchison, welcomed Ethel and stated that it would be ridiculous, given the spirit of the age, to deny her and any other woman admission. Nevertheless, her admission was opposed by a minority of members.[3] Despite this initial opposition, she was finally granted membership, 51 voting in favour and 16 against.[4][5] In 1902 she made a representation to the Architectural Association for women to be accepted as practising architects. However, the Association would not admit any women until 1917.

Unable to obtain commissions for large-scale projects which continued to be reserved for men, Ethel Charles was forced to concentrate on modest housing projects such as labourers' cottages,[6] often working with her sister, the second woman to become a member of RIBA in 1900. Charles stated publicly that the best opportunities for architects were in commercial commissions but the only reference to her work on large-scale designs is an untraced prize-winning church in Germany in 1905. The same year she was awarded the RIBA Silver Medal.[4]

Ethel Charles' orthographic projections of labourers' cottages from 1895 are presented by RIBA as an example of how the Old English style began to evolve towards the Arts and Crafts and Garden City movements.[7] RIBA celebrated Charles as a pioneer woman architect in 2017.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sumita Sinha, "Diversity in Architectural Education: Teaching and learning in the context of Diversity", Women in Architecture. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  2. ↑ "Ethel & Bessie Charles". The Bartlett History Project. Retrieved 2017-07-05.
  3. ↑ Symonds, Richard (1999). Inside the Citadel: men and the emancipation of women 1850-1920. Macmillan Press Ltd. p. 165.
  4. 1 2 Lynne Walker, "Golden Age or False Dawn? Women Architects in the Early 20th century", English-heritage.org. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  5. ↑ "The admission of lady Associates". RIBA Journal. 6: 78. 10 Dec 1898.
  6. ↑ Women in Architecture: creating change. http://women-in-architecture.com/fileadmin/wia/pdfs/pdfs_creating_change_profiles/Ethel_Mary_Charles_Bessie_Ada_Charles.pdf accessed 5 Jul 2017
  7. ↑ "The Victorian era: Ethel Mary Charles", RIBA. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  8. ↑ "Celebrate an architecture pioneer – Ethel Mary Charles". www.architecture.com. Retrieved 2017-07-05.


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