Little

Oct 6, 2022

min

by Lillian Parker

20 Hispanic Architects, Engineers & Designers to Know

Architects, engineers and designers shape the world we live in. Their vision and ingenuity can break down barriers, resolve complex problems and tell important stories. In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, get to know these 20 Hispanic design professionals whose talent is making a major impact.

Did you know? Hispanic countries include Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Felipe Escudero

Quito, Ecuador | Architect

Escudero is reinventing the architecture of Ecuador with a sensibility for modern design and landscape inside the spaces. His firm focuses on design, business tactics and experiential innovation.

Hector Esrawe

Mexico City, Mexico | Industrial Designer

Hector Esrawe, a Mexican industrial designer, is a true celebration of creativity, exploration and material expression.

Mariano Alonso & Ludmila Crippa

Buenos Aires, Argentina | Architects

Mariano Alonso and Ludmila Crippa, founders of design studio Alonso&Crippa, are Argentinian architects with a great sensibility for the space and surroundings.

Vanessa Galvez

El Salvador; Queens, New York | Engineer

Vanessa Galvez is a Salvadorian civil engineer who oversaw the institution of 164 bioswales in Queens, New York. These bioswales helped to remove pollutants from the storm water.

Alejandro Aravena

Santiago, Chile | Architect

Aravena’s approach to affordable housing shows ingenious creativity while showing care and humanity for his subject. “With the right design, sustainability is nothing but the rigorous use of common sense.”

Giancarlo Mazzanti

Bogotá, Colombia | Architect

Mazzanti is founder of El Equipo Mazzanti, a Colombian design studio specializing in socially driven architectonic design and academic research. His work highlights the importance of modules and how they can enhance the future growth on buildings, while always considering that buildings change.

Jason García Noonan

Madrid, Spain; Bogotá, Colombia | Architect

Jason Garcia Noonan worked at the Madrid Barajas Airport T4, where his obsession for detail and technical capacity flourished while working on complex projects.

Frida Escobedo

Mexico City, Mexico | Architect

Frida Escobedo, a contemporary Mexican architect, recently got selected to design the new wing for the Met Museum in NYC. This is a big jump in scale and budget to her otherwise small but very meaningful interventions.

César Pelli

San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina; New Haven, Connecticut | Architect

The visionary architect César Pelli is known for designing some of the world’s tallest buildings, including the impressive Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur.

Luciano Kruk

Buenos Aires, Argentina | Architect

An Argentinian architect, Luciano Kruk is admirable for very modern, crisp and cleaned-line aesthetic.

Willy Chavarria

Mexico; Fresno, California | Fashion Designer

Willy Chavarria recently won the National Design Award for Fashion Design. He favors volume and extra-large silhouettes as a way to “reclaim [the] space that has been taken” from people of color.

Narciso Rodriguez

Cuba; Newark, New Jersey | Fashion Designer

Narcisco Rodriquez is best known for Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s wedding dress and several of Michelle Obama’s iconic dresses when she was First Lady.

Felix Candela

Spain; Durham, North Carolina | Architect

Felix Candela, a Spanish Architect who passed away in Durham, NC, is famous for his architecture/structural concrete forms.

Luis Barragán

Mexico City, Mexico | Architect

Luis Barragan is a Mexican Architect famous for his Mexican contemporary architecture.

Simón Vélez

Manizales, Colombia | Architect

Colombian architect, Simon Velez, is famous for his incredible work in bamboo.

Rogelio Salmona

Bogotá, Colombia | Architect

A French Colombian architect, Rogelio Salmona is best known for his “out of this world brick work!”

Tatiana Bilbao

Mexico City, Mexico | Architect

Tatiana Bilbao is a contemporary Mexican Architect who often creates collaged 3D drawings during the design process of projects. Her studio is rooted in Mexico City and focuses on finding building solutions, however she has projects all over the world.

Rozana Montiel

Mexico City, Mexico | Architect

Rozana Montiel’s work involves creating smaller interventions like play spaces in existing housing projects in Mexico. Her entire practice is rooted in bettering existing infrastructure and spaces to foster community/better living conditions. Her work is subtle, relatively small, but extremely impactful.

Carmen Suero

Dominican Republic; Los Angeles, California | Architect

Carmen is a Principal at LA-based architecture firm Good Project Company. At Southern California’s National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA), she serves as Second Vice President and works toward creating an equitable and diverse chapter. She also leads Latinas in Architecture task force, a group that helps Latina architects find their voices in the industry.


At Little, we are committed to moving toward authentic equity and diversity within the design profession. Hear from Little’s Meghana Joshi, Retail Senior Project Manager, about how we address inequities through representation in practice and mentorship.

About

Lillian Parker

Lillian is the External Communications Manager on Little's Marketing Team. A self-proclaimed problem solver with insatiable curiosity, she strives to build meaningful relationships and foster creative talent. When she's not ogling her rescue pup, you can find Lillian telling stories, cheerleading her friends and binging true crime documentaries.

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